Benjamin and Mrs Robinson
by QueenOfKingston
Summary: Matt Smith knows nothing about Alex Kingston, and vice versa. But after deciding to watch Moll Flanders the night before he meets her, Matt develops a irrevocable crush on her. Filming Doctor Who brings them closer together, and the crush becomes mutual. Neither one of them want to admit it, and the tension builds both on and off set. Mattex.
1. Curiosity

**Author's Note: Okay, so this is technically not really "Doctor Who" fanfiction but more like "people behind Doctor Who fanfiction" but I will make the show very, very relevant. Also, I know it's kind of wrong to ship real-life people together but some people like Matt and Alex just make it so hard NOT to.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Doctor Who or any of the actors. But if I owned Alex... okay I can't even TELL you what I'm thinking. Just read! Haha. **

* * *

Hazel eyes veered left-to-right from behind circular glasses, reading the words on a set of pages. Matt Smith read his script for tomorrow, his feet propped onto the coffee table and his fingers brushing against his lips. He sighed, setting it down as he finished the last page for "Time of Angels."

_River Song_, the name racked through his mind as he tried to solve the enigma of this intrigueing woman. He had seen Alex Kingston's first episode in the role of River, and her identity had intrigued him ever since. When show-runner Steven Moffat noted that she would be returning to _Who_, Matt dug into Steven's skin to try to get the stubborn man to release details on who she was.

He wouldn't, and it drove Matt insane. Maybe he was a little too interested in _Doctor Who_.

Regardless, he thought Alex had been brilliant. Her acting struck him, enough to bring tears to eyes that rarely watered. He was thrilled to be meeting her and working with her tomorrow, as she was quite lovely. He also knew she would be playing his love interest, and that intrigued him even more.

Unable to sleep and feeling curious about his new co-star, Matt rose, slipping on his shoes and coat and heading for the movie gallery.

* * *

"Steven, you have GOT to be kidding me!" Alex said with a half-smile on her face as she scrolled through Matt Smith's official IMDB page, one hand on the mouse and the other holding her phone. "He's only 28!"

"Alex, it's not like I'm asking ye to marry him," Steven told her with a slight laugh. "It's just acting!"

"But he's just a boy!" Alex protested, leaning back in her chair and rolling her eyes. "Answer me this, if you were an actor and you had to play the love interest of a woman in her twenties, could you do it and not feel completely awkard...or even keep a straight face?"

Steven laughed. "That's why I'm a writer, not an actor."

"That _doesn't_ answer my question," Alex scorned, pressing her fingers against her temple.

"Oh but doesn't it?" Steven contradicted, and Alex could almost see him raising his brows and grinning at her.

She heaved a sigh, leaning closer to the computer screen and staring at his picture. "Well... at least he's _hot_," she admitted, lightly biting her lip. "Though I feel quite a bit like Mrs. Robinson."

Steven laughed heartily. "Mrs. Robinson, I like that! I think I'll put that in the script somewhere."

"Don't you dare!" Alex hissed with a laugh.

"_Goodnight_, Alex. See you on set tomorrow," Steven said, hanging up.

"I'm serious! Steven-STEVEN!" she called after him, but he had already let her off of the line. "I am going to _kill_ him," she said to herself with a chuckle, before exiting out of her browser and crawling into bed.

* * *

_The Fortunes and Misfortunes of Moll Flanders_ wasn't the type of film that Matt Smith would typically watch, yet it was the disk he was inserting into his DVD player. His growing curiosity of Alex as a love interest had convinced him, and he had heard that it was quite good...and naughty. Okay, that might've had a little bit to deal with it as well.

His heart galloped through his chest as he admired how beautiful she was. Granted, the movie was nearly fifteen years old and she had aged...but she played the part of an eighteen-year-old girl so she couldn't be too far from thirty-five.

He desperately tried to focus on the actual plot of the movie, but the eye candy was too distracting. His thoughts became harder to process as she continuously undressed throughout the movie. Sexual thoughts raced through his mind, causing his pulse to quicken and he could not simply will away the natural reaction of his body. He'd have to fix that sooner or later.


	2. Kneed in the Knackers

**Hello! I'm updating this later than I had hoped! College=BUSY. Anyway, I am trying to make this as correct as possible with filming times. I assume it takes about a week or two to film one episode, and editing occurs as filming goes on so I figure it takes about four-to-six to make a whole season. So this is set in 2010, where Matt is 28 and Alex is 47. I believe that's correct. Anyways, I'm trying! Thanks for reading. **

* * *

Naturally-curly blonde locks rapped around a set of rollers, as a hairdresser tied them all together with a sheer bandana. "There ye go, Miss Kingston," she said to the slightly younger woman as the saucy actress stared in the mirror at herself.

Alex smiled slightly in aknowledgement, blinking her eyes a couple of times as the makeup artist began to perform her works on her face.

"Hello!" the ever-so-fresh Karen Gillan said happily to Alex as she sat in a chair beside her. "I'm Karen, it's nice to finally meet the woman behind this River Song character that Steven's been so giddy about!"

Alex looked over at her, showing off a brilliant smile. "Hello, Karen! Nice to meet you, too, I'm Alex," she said, extending her hand as the hairdresser started working on Karen's frizzy red hair.

"Oh, yes, we know. Steven hasn't shut up about you, really! He's so excited about you returning. He has us all in a fuss abou' who you are n' all," Karen informed her in her thick Scottish accent. "But I agree with Amy-that's my character, by the way- I_ to'ally_ think you're the Doctor's wife."

"It wouldn't surprise me with the way the script was written for this episode... along with hints I received from the episode I filmed with David," Alex agreed, taking her eyes away from the ginger woman and closing them as the makeup artist painted her eyelids. "Plus, Steven may have hinted it to me over the phone a couple of times. Or he's just messing with my head, one of those two," she laughed.

"Yeah, he does like to do that..." Karen's eyes wandered back to her reflection. "But either way, you get to play Matt's love interest! Good luck with _that_!" she laughed. "He's a fumbling mess, I'm telling you."

Alex gulped a little, cracking an almost-awkard smile. "Looking forward to it."

* * *

Matt was rehearsing the first scene on the TARDIS without Karen and Alex, the crew lined up behind him. He held his hand out to the TARDIS, imagining Alex swinging torwards him. "Hold it," he said, turning towards Steven. "I have an idea!"

"An unscripted idea?" Moffat said almost rhetorically, cocking a brow and smiling. He loved when actor's used their own input. Matt was especially brilliant at it.

"Yes. I think it would make things a lot more interesting if we actually had River fall on top of the Doctor, instead of just sort of swinging into the TARDIS," he suggested with a grin, using some hand motions to describe the mental image he was having.

Moffat grinned, remembering his conversation with Alex last night. Oh, she was going to _hate_ him. But he couldn't deny the temptation. "I like it!" he said, commanding a few crew members to set up a landing mat in front of the TARDIS doors and going to talk with them about the new scene arrangement.

Matt smiled, turning around to see Karen and Alex making their way torwards him. His eyes met with Alex's, and his lips parted slightly. She was even more beautiful in person. He scanned her body in that daring black dress, his eyes flickering to her Louis Vuitton heels that matched the seductive red lipstick painted on her lips.

Karen stepped away so that they could introduce themselves.

Alex slightly frowned as Karen veered away from her, but quickly replaced the frown with a wide smile as she looked upon the youngest man to play the Doctor. "Hello, I'm Alex..." she said politely.

Matt merely stared at her, nervosity written on his face. "I..I like your shoes," he sputtered, looking down at her feet. Oh, what fantastic first words to say to Alex Kingston. He felt like slapping himself immediately, but he merely tucked his hands behind his back, holding them together with a tight grip.

Alex looked puzzled, glancing down at her feet and laughing awkwardly. "Thank you...I suppose they are quite glamorous," she admitted, looking back at his face. "Though I was sort of expecting 'Hello, I'm Matt' instead."

"Oh, yes! Sorry... Hello, I'm Matt. But apparantly you already know that because you just said my name, so I suppose I'll just say 'hello' then...sorry...um...hello!" he said, scratching his cheek. He suddenly regretted mentioning to Steven that she should land on top of him. He could hardly speak to her, and he felt like he was already making quite the fool of himself.

"No, no, it's fine, don't apologize," she said, chuckling at him. "And yes, I know who you are. I'm up to date on all of your episodes, by the way. Well, at least from what Steven allowed me to see because they haven't been released yet."

"Same with yours...even though you really only have one episode. Well, two episodes, same plot. Split-episode. One of those...yeah," he continued, smiling wide at her. "But you were very good!" he complimented, regaining his composure. "Very vew people can bring me to tears with their acting but you accomplished that!"

"Thank you," Alex smiled, biting her lip. He was quite adorable, she had to admit, and she found his awkward demeanor to be oddly sexy. Karen was right; he_ was_ a mess.

"I'm very excited to work with you!" Matt continued, still smiling and beginning to play with his pockets. "Do you know anything about who River Song is?"

She shook her head. "No, Steven won't tell me anything. Though, I have my own theories. You?"

"No, Steven is driving me mad! All I know is that you and I are going to be playing a... well, you know," his smile became sheepish and he broke his eye contact with her.

"Love interest? Yes, yes I'm afraid we are," she commented.

"_Afraid_?" Matt stressed, his eyes returning to hers. "I assure you, Kingston, there's nothing to be afraid of. I don't bite!" he stepped closer to her.

'Kingston.' She liked that. "Oh, you don't? Oh, I'm afraid that's a deal-breaker. I like biters," she winked.

A surge of nerves struck his abdomen as she said that, and Matt forced a laugh despite how much she had unnerved him with her suggestive comment. "Oh, well in that case, I would totally bite you..." he paused, his eyes widening as he realized what he had just said. "I um.. I mean...you know..I..."

She laughed, lightly touching his arm. "It's okay, sweetie, I know what you meant," Alex told him, biting her lip and shaking her head as she looked down at the ground. He was not what she was expecting at all. Here he was, the man who played the Doctor. A young, handsome man behaving like an awkward, nervous school boy. She wondered if he was always like this, and saw the appeal that she could have a little fun unnerving him like that on set.

Matt stopped and looked at her hand as she touched the sleeve of his tweed jacket, the physical contact nearly stopping his heart. He really wished he hadn't watched that movie last night.

He smiled at her as she lifted her eyes back to his, and for a moment they just stood their and looked at one another. Steven interrupted the brief moment, wrapping his arms around both of his stars and pulling them into a group-hug. The hug caused Matt and Alex's bodies to collide, and they both blushed. "I see you two 'ave met!" Steven said excitedly, releasing them. "You ready to rehearse?" he asked, his grin freakishly wide.

"Yes," Alex was first to respond, trying to hide the color of her cheeks. She glanced at Matt to see if he had noticed, only to find that his cheeks were more red than hers.

Steven placed his hand on the small of Alex's back and walked her torwards the set, explaining to her how they were going to film the scene of her flying out of a spaceship. Matt watched as they lifted her onto strings. He crossed his arms, smiling as she fumbled in mid-air and laughed wildly. She had to get into character to film a couple of shots, and then they allowed her to descend as they led her to the next set, which was in front of the TARDIS console room. Matt found his place at the doors, smiling at her as she was lifted onto another lift.

"Alright, Alex, we are going to fling you at Matt and you're going to land on top of him," Steven said, but he didn't have room to further explain before she interrupted.

"I'm going to do what?" she asked, her eyes widening a bit. "That wasn't in the script!"

Steven grinned almost nervously. "Slight change in the script, dear."

She got closer to him so that only he could hear, her eyes narrowing. "I_ hate_ you," she hissed.

"No ye don't," Steven chuckled as she was lifted onto the strings.

Alex closed her eyes and squealed. "Are you SURE about this?!" she called to Matt.

"Yes, it's fine! I'm right here, I'll catch you," he assured her.

"Oh God..." Alex said nervously under her breath, as she was flung torwards the young actor.

Matt wrapped his arms tightly around her as she fell onto him with a loud, "Omph!" She had landed as gracefully as possible, her body gently nestled into his. He realized how incredibly bad of an idea this was when he felt himself harden underneath her. He shifted his weight, hoping she wouldn't notice. He smiled awkwardly up at her as she lifted her body, pressing her lips together and tucking her hair back in place.

"Alright, great rehearsal! Start rolling cameras!" the director commanded, as Alex was taken away to be slung at him once more.

The next few takes were followed by wild laughing, as Alex almost kneed him in between his legs. He didn't seem to mind. He'd just hold her there as they'd laugh together. At first, he didn't know how to react. Even when cameras cut she would just lay comfortably on him, and he found himself caressing her upper arms. Upon realizing what he was doing, he looked up. He took note that she didn't seem to mind, so he just laughed and threw his head back, carrying on.

His gentle touches made her head spin, and Alex knew that she really shouldn't enjoy them this much. He was awfully flirty despite being so sheepish and awkward.

"Alright, try to be really in character this time," Moffat told Alex, pulling her from her thoughts and reminding her that this was a set and they didn't have all day to film this one snippet. She nodded, putting on a straight face and flying torwards Matt once more. Then, it happened. Her knee came too close that time, hitting Matt where the sun doesn't shine.

"Ri...ver..."Matt croacked, his eyes wincing in pain.

Alex's mouth fell open, her eyes widening as she pulled back. She was relieved to see him crack a smile, and she began laughing and buried her face into his chest. She rose slightly, and he reached out and touched her waist gently as she still sat on top of him.

"Time is money, people!" Matt laughed before laying back down.

Alex just held her stomach, laughing and looking down at him. "I'm so sorry!"

"No, it's fine. You didn't get me that hard. It's all quite fun, actually," he said as she extended a hand to help him up.

"Yes, I suppose it is," she giggled, shaking her head as she walked back over to her 'diving board' as she had begun to call it.

After finally getting the take right, Steven told both actors to take a break.

"Thank you! Me, Alex, and me knackers greatly appreciate it!" Matt told Steven, and he and Alex just laughed more. He led her out of the TARDIS control room, walking outside for fresh air.

"All of that for one unscripted scene," Alex said, shaking her head and smiling.

"Yes, but it was funny..." Matt smiled, scratching his hair. "You're definitely fun to work with, Kingston."

"So are you," she responded truthfully. She was so pleasantly surprised. "And I'll make it up to you... for you know, getting you in the googies."

Matt smiled at her comment, but even more so at her facial expression when she said 'googies.' He found himself completely wrapped in how adorable she was. "Yes, you will. I like getting coffee in the morning."

"Coffee it is," she agreed with a wide smile.

"Tomorrow, before filming?" he asked her hopefully.

She nodded. "I'll meet you on set an hour before we're scheduled to rehearse."'

"Sounds good to me, Kingston!" he clasped his hands together, smiling wildly and about to say something before her hair and makeup crew pulled her aside.

"Miss Kingston, you're scheduled for a touch-up!" one of the crew said.

Alex rolled her eyes but smiled. "See you next scene!" she waved at Matt, before being lead off back to hair-and-makeup.

"Next scene..."Matt repeated as he watched her walk away, still smirking even though she was several feet away from him now.

And she was smiling too, just as giggly as she was during filming. Nothing breaks the ice better than a few knees in the knackers.


	3. Coffee And Badgers

Divorce was never easy to get over. Alex Kingston swore after how it ended with Ralph, she would never divorce again.

Then problems with Florian surfaced.

It would have been a year today since the divorce. Considering the date fell on one of the Doctor Who filming dates, she almost regretted taking the job. The past six days she had been cheerful and happy, filled with new friends and the best laughter she had in years.

But not today. She was unsure of her ability to even get out of the bed. Her eyes were red and puffy, strained from crying over her failure as a wife and even a mother to Salome. This was so hard on the nine-year old, and the divorce had only strained her relationship with her mother.

Alex looked at the clock. She had to be on set in less than half an hour, and she was a complete mess. She thought about calling in sick and staying in bed, but before she made her decision she heard the bell of her hotel room ring. Her brows furrowed and her eyes winced. Irritated, she rose and walked to the door. Her hair was wild and frizzy, her face worn with lack of sleep, and she wore nothing fancier than baggy sweatpants and a black tee. Normally, she would hate for someone to catch her in this state of fashion, but she figured it was just room service.

She was wrong. She opened the door, screeching and backing up several steps when she saw Matt's cheery face beaming at her. Alex immediately turned her back to him, concealing her face with her hands. "What are you doing here?!" Alex scorned, staring widely into her palms. If her face hadn't already been red from the crying, it was surely red now.

Matt frowned, his hands that held two coffees dropping slightly. "Well, I figured I would bring you coffee this morning and we could carpool to work... Alex, are you alright?"

She turned around, only just now noticing the coffee. She tried to smile, but failed miserably. "Thank you, Matt..that was sweet of you..." she reached for the coffee, shaking, but he stepped around her and placed them on the table.

"Alex, you didn't answer me..are you alright?" he asked again, placing his hands on her shoulders.

She wouldn't look him in the eyes. She kept her face down, not wanting him to see the rough state she was in. He was used to seeing the glamorous, radiant Alex Kingston, and now here she was...sulking and dull with no trace of makeup on her face. "Yes, Matt, I'm fine," she lied, pulling away from him and walking into the kitchen. She opened the fridge, but could only stare inside with the knowledge that she wasn't hungry.

"You've been crying. I can tell. You can try to avoid letting me see your face but I can still tell you've been crying," he told her, closing the door and tightening his jaw.

"That's not why I'm avoiding looking at you," she informed him softly, closing the door to the fridge and walking torwards him. She picked up her coffee from the table, sitting down on the couch and still avoiding his gaze.

"Don't_ lie_ to me, Kingston," he told her sternly, sitting down beside her and peering around to try to catch a glimpse of her.

"I'm _not_ lying," she said harshly, finally turning and looking at him. "I don't like anyone to see me looking like _this; _it's embarassing_."_

_"_Looking like what?" Matt asked, frowning, but her stonelike facial expression said it all. "What? Because you aren't all fancied up you don't want me to look at you?" he continued, cracking a bewildered smile. "Alex, that's ridiculous. You look beautiful."

She stared at him, a little taken aback. She turned away, figuring he was only saying that to make her feel better. He was a young, handsome man dating beautiful model Daisy Lowe. Alex never considered herself ugly, but as the years passed her confidence faded, and after her second divorce it had become barely existant. She knew she couldn't compare to women that his youthful eyes sought for, but she appreciated his kindness. His sincerity was even believable, but he is an actor afterall. Alex sipped her coffee, thanking him once more for the sweet gesture. "We need to head to work," she told him, rising to her feet.

He sighed, exiting the room. "So you don't mind if I drive you?" he asked.

She looked over at him, seeming to ponder it. She had only known him for a few days, and it was probably improper. But he _had_ brought her coffee and he was so very kind to her. It wasn't like he was like most men, either. His personality was so different and so likeable...she had trouble telling him no. "I suppose not. You did come all this way..."

He smiled, opening the car door for her.

She looked up at him, smirking in slight surprise. It had been a while since a man had opened a door for her. "Quite the gentleman, I see," she complimented as he walked around and entered the driver's side.

"Always," he responded with a smug smile, as he drove off.

After a few minutes of catching glimpses of Alex, who was staring out the window, Matt finally said, "You never told me what was wrong with you."

Alex sighed, pressing a hand to her temple and waiting a few moments before responding, "Today marks one year since my divorce..._second_ divorce," she emphasized, as if annoyed with herself.

His browline raised slightly, as he hadn't considered her being married at all, much less twice. He had asked her on their first coffee date if she was seeing anyone, but she had responded with a short, 'No,' and then began asking questions about Daisy before he could press for further information. "Ah.." he said looking over at her. "How long were you two together?" he asked.

"About twelve years," she responded, noticing the surprised look on Matt's expression.

"Wow... you two must've gotten together young. You said it was your second marriage?" he asked, seeming a bit confused.

She winced at him, her brows cocking. "Not really, I was thirty-five when we began seeing each other," she responded. "And yes, second marriage."

"Thirty-five?!" he exclaimed softly, his expression becoming even more confused as he did the math in his head. "Twelve years? That would make you..." his eyes widened. "That would make you 47, Alex," he looked over at her.

She nodded slowly. "Yes, yes I am..."

Matt's mouth hung ajar as he stared at her in disbelief. He forced himself to keep his eyes back on the road. "I thought you were just a few years older than I am... You look incredible," he said, still trying to wrap his head around the fact that she was nearly twenty years his senior.

She couldn't help but smile a bit. A few years older than him? Just a few? That seemed to her like a bit of a stretch, but the shock on Matt's face was genuine. "Well..thank you.." she told him, flattered.

"Anyway, I feel sorry for him," Matt said, his face now washed from the shock.

"What?" Alex asked, caught off guard by the seemingly random statement.

"Your ex. Both of them. They lost someone really wonderful," he looked over at her, flashing a small smile.

She looked at him with such softness in her worn face. She smiled in return, tears welling in her eyes once more before she looked away. "Not according to them," she responded simply.

"Well then they're daft," Matt said stubbornly, wishing she would be more reasonable.

"Thank you again for the coffee," Alex changed the subject, sipping it and smiling at him. "You remembered what kind I liked; I'm impressed,"

"Good memory, I suppose," Matt flashed a smile as they arrived to the set. He downed the rest of his coffee, pulling into his parking spot and rushing out quickly to open the door on her side before she could protest.

She looked at him, increasingly amazed at how much of a gentleman he was. She took his hand, smiling and toting her coffee as he helped her out of the vehicle. "Thank you," she said softly, and he nodded.

"Are you going to be okay to film today?" he asked, feeling like he should've asked her before they left.

She nodded. "I'm better, now," she assured him. "Thank you."

"You're not too convincing," he chuckled slightly. "I may have to get Charlie to visit you," he told her with a wink.

"Who's Charlie?"she asked, her brows raising.

Matt grinned. "You'll see. Later, Kingston," he touched her elbow slightly before running off.

"Oh dear," she rolled her eyes and smiled, heading to hair-and-makeup.

* * *

The cast and crew were taking a bus ride this morning to a seperate set. Alex sat on the bus, dressed in an army uniform with her hair messy hair pulled back into a simple ponytail. Karen and Matt loaded the bus, Karen smiling madly and Matt looking very suspicious with his hands behind his back.

She cocked a brow, wondering what was about to unfold.

Karen and Matt looked at each other knowingly, then began, "IIIIIIIIITTSSS CHAAARRLIIIIIEEE!" as Matt brought out a hand-puppet from behind his back.

Alex laughed wildly as Matt began to use the badger puppet to say hello to Alex. "Hello, Charlie," Alex giggled, amazed at how ridiculous Matt was.

"We've really loved having you on set!" he said, Charlie's and Matt's mouths curled into a smile.

"I've loved being here, as well," Alex laughed, shaking her head at Matt. "Aren't you cute?" she said, patting Charlie's head.

"Oooh, well don't you know how to make a badger blush, Miss Kingston!" Charlie said, covering his cheeks with his paws. "You're quite lovely, yourself!"

Alex grinned brighter than ever, seeming to forget everything she had been going through. "Hmmm, and you're sweet, too. Why haven't we met before?"

"Because Matt's a stingy bastard and wants you all to himself!" Charlie said, turning around to glare at his puppet master.

"Oi! Not true! You said you were too tired to come out and play with Alex!"

Alex gasped, putting her hand over her heart and pouting. "Charlie! Is that true?" she asked, giving a classical heartbreak expression.

"No, no, no! Don't listen to Matt, he's wankers!" Charlie exclaimed, trying to bite Matt's face.

"Hey now!" Matt said, pulling himself back from the vicious puppet as Karen and Alex giggled madly. "Now Charlie, this is not acceptable behavior! I'm going to have to put you away!"

Charlie pulled back, frowning. "I don't want to be put away!"

"Well, too bad!" Matt said, using his free hand to smack Charlie lightly on the nose. "You've been very bad, Charlie.

"Aww...well can I at least get a kiss from Alex before I go?" Charlie said, frowning.

Matt looked at Alex, smirking and looking for her approval.

Alex chuckled. "Of course you can, Charlie," she said, reaching out for him.

"Squee!" Charlie said, rushing towards Alex's face and letting her plant a sweet kiss right on his mouth. "Now that's my kinda woman!" Charlie said as Matt walked over to his seat to put him away.

"Isn't it hilarious?!" Karen asked as Alex tried to regain her composure from the fit of laughter she was having.

Alex nodded, swatting away her tears. She was laughing so hard she was crying.

Matt walked up, looking at Karen confused. "What is hilarious?"

"When you do that!" Karen said, trying to gesture a puppet with her own bare hand.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Karen, Charlie is a real badger and he would be very hurt to know you're insisting such a thing!" Matt crossed his arms and pouted before sitting in the seat above Alex's. He looked over at her as Karen rolled her eyes, sitting in a seat beside Alex's. The crew was still laughing quite a bit, too.

"You are so silly," Alex told him, shaking her head at the younger man.

"Ah, but you're laughing, so I'm assuming that's not a bad thing!" Matt said, grinning as he propped his chin upon the seat to stare into her eyes.

"No, it's not," Alex admitting, still smiling. He was so different than anyone she had ever met. So funny and young and full of life... and yet such a kind and sweet gentleman. He was attractive, but in a way that went beyond his good looks. He had a manner about his persona that made him attractive as well. Oh, and he _was_ charming.

_Daisy is a lucky girl_, she thought, and at that her smile faded. But she didn't know why.


	4. Drunk Santa on an April Night

**I need to start proofreading more! I read over some of the chapters and cringed at my mistakes in sentence structure! Sigh. Also, I realized 2010 was starting too late. The episode AIRED in April 2010 but I think it was filmed in late 2009. We will just make this slightly off-time then, so sorry for that mistake!**

**Please review! :)**

* * *

Weeping angel sets were always creepy, but this one took the cake. No single person between cast and crew could walk around the menacing cave alone. Matt was glad this would be the last day that they would be filming in the cave, and tomorrow they would begin filming Flesh and Stone.

Then Alex would return to America.

He frowned as he watched Alex from across the cave, still worried about her after how upset she had been that morning. He dreaded the idea of letting her be alone tonight, but he had conjured a plan.

Matt leaned close to Steven, taking his eyes off Alex to stare into the older man's eyes. "Soo, Steven, Steve, Steve-O, the big Moff," Matt began, grinning. Steven raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "Wrapping up a week's filming today, I think we should all rent out the pub tonight and have a few drinks, ey?"

Steven chuckled slightly. "Sounds good," he replied, to which Matt grinned.

"Good, spread the word!" the young actor said, as the cameras were rolled away and everyone prepared to leave. Steven and Matt began spreading the word, but Matt made a point to be the one to walk up to Alex. He walked up to her with his suave demeanor and winning smile, causing her own lips to slither upwards across her face.

"So, Kingston. We're all having a get-together at the pub tonight, want to join us?" Matt asked, blinking his puppy eyes at her.

Alex laughed slightly, placing her hands delicately on her hips. "I really shouldn't," she informed him, sitll smiling.

Matt immediately frowned. "You shouldn't?" he asked, disappointment written in his features.

"No, I shouldn't. I like to drink, don't get me wrong, but I'm afraid I don't trust myself to be drunk around the likes of people I barely know," she explained, her smile unfading.

"Oh? Why not?" Matt asked, his curiosity burning in his eyes.

"Well I don't really have a filter to begin with; I say and act as I please with little limit of responsibility. So when I'm drunk I become a little too honest and careless and that's a dangerous thing," she replied with absolute honesty and an adorable chuckle.

"I might like that," Matt replied, smiling again. "Besides, half the crew's not gonna remember what you say and do! And if they do, they'll be to drunk to care. C'mon, Kingston, I won't let you do anything you'll regret in the morning. Scout's honor," he bit his lip, his eyes begging. "And after what I saw this morning, you look like you could use a night out."

Alex laughed, but then looked to her feet, fiddling with her hands uncomfortably. "I'll be fine, I'm always fine," she finally said after a moment of silence.

"I don't want you to be alone," Matt told her, placing his hands on her elbows which caused her to look up into his eyes as she realized how close they were. "If it makes you uncomfortable and you really don't want to go, then I won't bother you about it... but I won't let you be alone tonight,"

She stepped back so that they weren't so close together, and stared at him with her eyes glassed over from tears. She stood there, wanting to ask him why he cared so much. He barely knew her. Maybe he was just an overly caring person? She cleared her throat, managing another smile as she said, "Alright, if it means that much to you, then I'll go. But you're paying for the cab!"

Matt laughed, overjoyed that she agreed to go. "We have an accord," he said, patting her on the shoulder and keeping his hand there. "C'mon, Kingston, I drove you hear so I guess I'll drive you home to get your clothes..."

"Oh? I can't wear this?" she asked, gesturing to her post-filming sweats and laughing, but walking with him torwards his car.

Matt raised a brow and grinned, reaching in his pocket for his keys. "If you really want to, but I'm sure you have something much more Alex-y in your wardrobe," he commented, remembering the floor-length lavendar dress she wore that morning on the second day of filming, when they got coffee together.

"Alex-y?" the older woman giggled, pulling her hair from it's high ponytail and ruffling her curls, and Matt had to fight the desire to ruffle them himself. "How exactly do you know what Alex-y is at this point?"

"Well, I don't, I suppose...but I have a wild imagination," he winked at her, biting his lip playfully as he opened his car door for her.

"Mmhm, I bet you do," Alex said with a returning wink as she stepped into the car door. "I bet that comes in handy."

Matt laughed heartily, jumping into the driver's side and starting the car. "Wouldn't you like to know?" he asked as they headed back to her flat.

"Perhaps I would, but it's better to not know," Alex said with a smirk as she leaned the chair back, turning her face to stare at him. "Knowing always gets you into trouble."

"Maybe I like trouble," Matt responded, fighting the urge to just stare at her and keeping his eyes on the road.

"That's what you have Miss Lowe, for, dearie," Alex said with her smirk fading. "I'm sure that pretty young thing has all sorts of trouble for you," she noticed how Matt's smile faded immediately, and the playful atmosphere faded completely.

"Yeah," Matt said simply, trying to force a smile but failing miserably.

"Is something the matter?" Alex asked, sitting up in her seat and frowning.

"No, not at all," he lied, quickly changing the subject to something about today's filming. Small talk continued, but Matt was internally freaking out. He had gone through all of that to get Alex to go to the pub tonight, completely forgetting about his date with his girlfriend tonight.

"See you later," Matt said as he pulled into the drive.

"You too," Alex said with a smile, half-expecting him to walk her out. He didn't. She climbed the stairs to her flat, frowning as she realized how distant he became after she brought up Daisy. He was so talented at making her feel better, but she didn't have the slightest idea how to make him feel better even if she could tell if something was wrong with him...which half the time, she couldn't.

* * *

Matt paced outside his car as he tried to come up with a way to fix the situation he had just gotten himself into. He heaved a sigh, finally deciding to open the door. He could hear a movie playing from the bedroom, and then he listened as it paused and footsteps replaced the noise.

Daisy emerged from the bedroom, grinning brightly as she stopped to let him admire the intense amount of work she had done to doll herself up. Her brown hair was curled and put up into a high ponytail, with her bangs swept to the side and a "bump" in her hair at the crown of her head. Her eye makeup was smokey like charcoal, winged out at least an inch or two past her eye. Bronzer was caked on her face and her lips were painted a shade much to pale. Her outfit was a black lace dress that looked like lingerie on top but was tight leather on the bottom. He imagined she probably received it as a gift from a photoshoot.

"So?" she asked, smirking as she fished for his reaction.

"You look beautiful," he said with a smile, walking towards her and kissing her cheek to avoid having his lips painted almost-white from her lipstick.

"That's it?" she asked, raising a brow and placing a hand on her hip. "No, 'wow' or anything? Just 'you look beautiful?'"

That settled it. This date was getting cancelled. He wanted to tell her she needed to stop being so full of herself, but he held his tongue. "Sorry, I'm not feeling too well," he lied.

"What do you mean, not feeling too well?" she asked, her eyes widening.

"Umm... my head hurts. I feel all clammy and...and not well," he said, putting on his best acting face as he pushed past her and walked into the bedroom.

"So what? We're not going out tonight then?" her mouth twitched and she suddenly appeared to be very, very cross.

"I think I should just stay in bed tonight, Daze," he told her, laying on the bed and covering his face with his hands.

Her fists clenched. "I spend three hours dolling myself up and you come home, no warning, and just tell me you're not feeling well enough to go out?!"

"I'm sorry, I just...I can't tonight. I'll make it up to you."

"Would it have killed you to have called me ahead of time and TOLD me you weren't feeling well? How long ago did you even start to get sick? Not sick enough to film, obviously, if you spent your whole day on set," she snapped, crossing her arms.

"I think it was something I ate after filming," he lied, avoiding her gaze.

"Oh you're so full of shit, Matt!" she screamed.

"I'm full of shit? Really, Daisy? I tell you I'm not feeling well and all you can think about is a bloody date! Have I not taken you on over a hundred of them? Quite frequently, might I add?! Do I not treat you like a princess on a normal basis? Do I not take you to wherever you want to go, with whatever friends you decide to bring along?!"

Guilt washed over her features and she calmed down. "Yes, you do..." she said, frowning and coming to sit beside him. She rubbed his hand fondly. "I'm sorry, love..."

He sighed. "It's okay. Hey, why don't you call up some of your friends and go out with them tonight?"

"I suppose I could," she smiled. "I'll miss you, though. You want me to get you anything? Medicine? Soup?"

"I'll miss you, too. And no, you look to pretty to run by the store. I'll call my sister. You have fun."

"Okay...I hope you feel better soon," she said, lightly pecking his forehead and leaving the room.

Matt let out a relieved sigh, but guilt still boiled in his stomach. He always felt like he treated Daisy so well. Took her out all the time, gave her whatever she wanted, put up with her annoying friends. But he questioned if he really gave her what she deserved, or if she even deserved it. He had lied to her. Wasn't the first time, wouldn't be the last. But this was not Matt. Anyone who knew him would agree that he is a kind, caring, down-to-earth person and so completely different from your average male these days. When he and Daisy first got together, there were no lies. No fighting. Just pure bliss. He was smitten with her. Eventually, though, things changed. He changed. He tried to not question his feelings for Daisy, but it happened often now. His growing crush on Alex wasn't helping.

Alex. Beautiful, charming, flirtacious, smart, wonderful, talented Alex Kingston with her curls and curves, sashaying across the set in the sexiest of ways. God, he was fawning over a woman that was nearly fifty. _How could I have found so many things to love about her when I've only known her for six days? _Matt thought as he laid in bed, his guilt spreading as he begin to fully realize how much he really, really liked her. _A crush is just a crush...I'm sure Daisy fawns over other men like Johnny Depp or someone. _But this was different. He had to _work_ with Alex, play her love interest, and one day he would probably have to kiss her. Matt thought of kissing Alex, imagining his lips colliding against hers as he took in her marvelous scent and buried his fingers into those tantalizing curls. The idea of it made his stomach flutter like it hadn't in a long time, and he realized that this was not okay. Fawning over his co-star while he was in a committed relationship with Daisy was not okay. But Alex was un-attainable. God, she would probably think he was ridiculous if he even told her any of this.

At the sound of Daisy leaving, Matt rose from his bed, changing into a V-neck white tee and a pair of jeans. He fixed his hair, then sent Daisy a text saying he was going to stay at his sister's tonight. He left in his car, but he was most definitely not headed to where Daisy thought he would be.

* * *

Matt had already taken a few shots before Alex even arrived. He was dancing wildly with Karen to an overly Scottish tune, and she was clogging almost as poorly as he was.

Alex stepped in, her hair put into an intricate bun wth a braid streaking across the right side and wrapping into the bun. Stray-away curls framed her lightly powdered face. Her makeup was light, consisting of mascara and a slightly fuschia lip, which contrasted nicely with the green dress. Oh, but that dress- a showstopper, for sure. It wrapped firmly around her fit body, stopping dangerously above the knees. It was technically strapless with a plunging neckline, but had sheer sleeves and hell, did she look gorgeous.

The crew stopped their antics to welcome her, and Matt just stared with a tipsy smirk on his face. She caught his gaze, and walked up to him, gesturing to her garb. "Is this 'Alex-y' enough for you?" she asked with a flirtacious wink.

"Well it's daring and sexy, just like you, so I would say that it's DEFINITELY Alex-y enough, darling," he returned the wink, sliding his arm around her and hugging her gently.

Alex blushed from his bold comment, but also because she realized this was the first time they had hugged. She slid a hand up his chest and her free arm around his frame, squeezing him tightly. She realized he hadn't moved his arm after seconds had past, and his lingering touch made all sorts of feelings pool inside her belly. It was Karen with her arms opened wide that broke the two apart, hugging the older woman tightly. "I'm so glad you're here!" the younger woman sqeualed in her drunken Scottish, looking down at Alex's wardrobe. "You look fantastic!"

"So do you, dearie!" Alex complimented in return to Karen's red gown and matching pumps. "Now was that you two trying to clog that I just walked in on?"

Karen and Matt looked at one another, laughing. "Yes, an attempt!" Karen laughed at herself.

"I think you should have a go, Kingston!" Matt told her wrapping his arm once more around her shoulders. "Who's with me?!"

"Al-ex, Al-ex, Al-ex!" the crew shouted in agreement.

Alex laughed heartily. "I'm going to need a few drinks in me, first!" she responded, shaking off Matt's arm to walk to the bar.

"That's the spirit, Kingston!" Matt grinned happily. "I'll have whatever she's having!"

Alex cocked a bow, smirking. "Coke and whiskey, Fireball. Three shots," she demanded the bartender, and he gladly obliged.

"Whiskey drinker, eh?" Matt asked as he looked at the bartender, who hesitated pouring the second and looked up at Matt for approval. "Eh, I've been drinking clears all night. Best not to mix the two."

"Wimp," Alex commented as she sipped her drink, shuddering as it went into her system.

"Whot was that Kingston!?" Matt exclaimed, wincing.

"Nothing," she chuckled. "Nothing at all!"

"Oi, you better not be talking smack o'er there or I'll have te punish you!" he managed to smile, pointing his finger at her.

"Mmhm, what are you going to do? Spank me?" she asked teasingly.

"Kingston, I'm drinking, don't tempt me," Matt said with a devilish smirk and Alex knew immediately that he wasn't kidding.

"This was all your idea, sweetie," Alex reminded him with a laugh. "You're the one who made this mess. Just wait til I've had some drinks in me, then I might be the one spanking you!"

Matt laughed wildly, biting his lip and flipping his hair out of his eyes boyishly before asking the bartender for a 'Sonic Screwdriver.' Apparently it was Matt's personal invention, consisting of Calico Jack whipped rum, Smirnoff blueberry vodka, and lemon-lime soda.

"Well that's interesting!" Alex commented on his drink with a slight laugh, downing the last of her first drink and asking for another.

"Isn't it?" Matt asked with a drunken chuckle, his eyes wandering to her cleavage. He didn't bother to hide it and she noticed, cocking a brow and kicking him in the shin. "OW! What was tha' for?"

"My eyes are up here," Alex snapped light-heartedly.

Matt frowned slightly but his smile return when he stared into her beautiful green eyes. "Yes, yes they are. And they are lovely eyes."

"Thank you," Alex blushed, shaking her head. "Shouldn't you be mingling with other people?"

"Well, I promised you I'd look after you. Besides, they all have to revolve around me at work, they don't want to do it outside of work. I'm pretty much ignored," Matt gave an overly fake pout, making Alex giggle and hit him lightly on the arm.

"Oh, hush you are not! You were just as easily the center of attention when I walked in to your clogging or whatever you'd like to call that!"

"Speaking of which, you owe me a clogging session Kingston!" he grabbed her arm, pulling her from the bar and to the center of the room. "Play those Scottish tunes, Jack!" he called to one of the camera men, who changed the station back to a similar tune that was playing when Alex came in.

Alex smirked devilishly, throwing off her heels and moving her legs percisely in rhythm. She even threw in a few twirls and sexy body movements that made jaws drop.

"Holy, hell, Alex, where did you learn to do that?!"Matt asked, clapping and laughing and obviously overly amused.

"Dancing lessons! It's easy, though, look!" she grabbed his hands, guiding him with her. "Watch my feet, feel the beat, and let it roll!"

He tried, and despite the amount of fun he was having, he was failing miserably. "Alex, I'm too drunk for this!" he laughed, nearly falling over one of the chairs as he stopped to gasp for breath.

"Hmm, and I'm not drunk enough! Need to fix that! Bartender!" she yelled, laughing as she picked up another drink. She could feel her inhibitions lowering, her body becoming more relaxed as she began to mingle with other crew members.

Matt slumped in a booth, now very drunk but laughing happily along with his friends. He watched as Alex became more wild and carefree, and he smiled knowing that she was able to have fun on an otherwise dreary day for her.

As everyone settled down and people began to leave, Alex stepped over to Matt, still slumped in his booth and having not moved in over an hour. "You okay, sweetie?" she asked, and without warning he pulled her into his lap. "I'm great," he told her in a drunken slur, grinning wide as he held her loosely in his arms. She blushed madly and giggled, obviously drunk. "Maaaattt! This is hardly appropriate!"

"You're not struggling," he noted, staring down onto her smiling face. She tried to struggle a little, but he just held her tighter. Matt looked over to see that he was receiving a few stares, despite how drunk everyone was. "Should probably get a cab then," he said, lifting her off his lap and guiding her out of the door.

"But Santa," Alex protested with a giggle as she was removed from his lap.

"Oh but you were just protesting a moment ago!" Matt told her with a grin as they stopped a cab and got in. He gave the location of Alex's apartment before slumping back in his chair, smiling at her. "Besides, Santa needs to go home, too," he chuckled.

"Mmhm, I don't want Santa to go home. Can't Santa just stay with me? I'll bake him cookies," Alex asked as she wrapped her arms around Matt's arm and snuggled close to him.

Even whilst drunk, Matt's stomach fluttered as she cuddled close to him and spoke like that. "I do like cookies," he responded softly, wrapping an arm around her.

"I make the best," she said, staring up at him and grinning.

"I don't think you'd be any good trying to bake cookies in this state of mind, Kingston. Perhaps some other time," he winked at her.

Alex frowned at him, realizing he was sobering up a little. He had stopped drinking much earlier than she did, after all. "Okay...I'll bring you cookies tomorrow for being such a good friend," she closed her eyes and enjoyed his scent, smiling at how close she was to him. "Matt?"

"Yes?" he asked, rubbing her shoulder.

"Thank you for tonight," she said sweetly, her smile painted blissfully on her all-too-tempting lips.

"You're welcome, love," he told her. The rest of the car ride was silent and they just enjoyed snuggling close to one another. The cab finally arrived at Alex's place, and Matt realized she had dozed off. He sighed, paying the cab driver and carrying her out of the car to her room. "Alex, you've gotta wake up, I don't have the key," he whispered, trying to put her down.

She awoke with a start, flustered as she searched for her keys. "Do you have my clutch?" she asked tiredly as he nodded and pulled the gold bag from the inside of his coat, handing it to her. She reached for the keys, opening the door and swaggering very drunkenly towards her bedroom, but not making it seeing as she fell down on the floor. She rolled over, laughing.

"Oh dear," Matt said, shaking his head as he rushed to her rescue. He picked her up as she gestured to where her bedroom was.

"I ike you carrying me, Santa" she mumbled in a slur as he set her gently down on the bed.

He smiled, sitting down and rubbing her hand gently to pass the time. He couldn't go home, and if he actually asked his sister if he could stay with her tonight, she would be very cross with the lateness of the hour, so he was going to opt for a hotel. "Goodnight, Alex," he said, rising and heading out the door.

"Don't go."

He turned around, the tremble in her voice as she said those words almost breaking his heart. "I shouldn't stay."

"But I want you to. Please. You told me you didn't want me to be alone. Don't let me be alone," she begged, moving over to make room for him.

"I promised you I wouldn't let you do anything you'd regret in the morning, and I'm sure letting me sleep in your bed with you is one of those things," he walked back over to her, knieling down and staring into her eyes. "Besides, I don't think Daisy would like that too much."

"Oh..." Alex said, her face becoming solemn. "I'm sorry. You go home to her. Goodnight," she said sadly, rolling over and pretending to be asleep.

"Goodnight," he told her, before leaving her flat.

* * *

**I cannot tell you how excruciating this was for me to write without making them kiss or having him spend the night! Haha. But I'm trying to go slow with this to make it more realistic. **

**Also, I don't know Daisy so my interpretation of her in no way necissarily means that's how she is.**

**Reviews make me happy by the way, so you should leave them if you like. :)**

**That is all!**


	5. Cookies and Apologies

**This will be a short, choppy chapter but I promise to update soon! :) Please review!**

* * *

The horrible pounding in her cranium made Alex immediately aware of her hangover. She groaned, wiping off last night's make up and recalling the events of the previous night. She remembered flirting with Matt, and how he had escorted her back to her flat..and how she asked him to come to bed with her.

_Damn it, Alex, you're such a cheap date_! She scorned herself as she rose from the bed to prepare herself. She was a little too rough with her toothbrush, angry at herself for coming on to him. She was drunk, yes, but she still should have known better. What scared her more was why she wanted him to sleep with her that night. Granted, she didn't have any sexual intentions, but it would still be inappropriate for them to stay in the same bed with their age difference and the fact that he had a girlfriend. He must have thought she was ridiculous to even ask. It was one thing to flirt with Matt; they were both flirty people and could flirt with a tree in all honesty. But she felt like she drew the line too far and apologies were in order.

She smiled slightly as she remembered calling him Santa and promising to bring him cookies. She rushed to her fridge, opening it and finding that she had the milk and eggs, but other necissary ingredients were missing. She checked the time, seeing that she had to be on set in two hours. She really didn't have time to go to the store and come back to bake cookies (with a terrible hangover), but Alexandra Kingston was not one to break her promises.

* * *

Matt rose at an extra early hour, leaving the hotel and driving over to his home. He walked in to find Daisy fast asleep, and he smiled at how innocent she looked laying there. He crawled in bed next to her, trying not to wake her.

He failed.

"Mmhmm," she moaned, her eyes fluttering open. "Hey baby," she smiled.

"Good morning, Daze," he smiled groggily, pushing her hair out of her eyes carelessly.

"You feeling better?" she asked, yawning and rubbing her eyes.

"Yeah, Laura took good care of me. Bad food poisoning. I'm sorry about last night, I'll make it up to you," he said, pulling her close.

"It's okay. I had fun," she told him, snuggling into his neck.

"Oh, really, what did you do?" he asked, a touch of sincerity to his voice.

"Went to a party with Summer and Ashley," she yawned, tracing the lines on his face. "I'm glad you're feeling better... you have to be at Doctor Who in a couple of hours, don't you?" she asked, cocking her brow.

"Yes. In a couple of hours."

She smirked, biting her lip and rolling on top of him as she began to kiss his neck. "That would give us plenty of time," she purred.

"It would," he agreed, as his eyes fluttered shut and he began to undress her.

* * *

Alex carried a container of cookies on set, wasting no time to bang on Matt's trailer door.

Matt opened it, halfway through buttoning up his shirt when he saw Alex. "Hello," he said lightly, staring at her with an expressionless face.

Pain struck through her chest as she realized how awkward his demeanor was. Sadness filled her eyes and she held out the container of cookies, looking down at her feet. "I-I'm sorry!" she mustered, trembling slightly.

"For what?" he asked, taking the cookies and opening the lid, delight pouring onto his face as he finally smiled.

Alex was relieved to see him smile, and she released a breath that she didn't realize she had been holding in. "Last night. I tried to warn you I'm like that when I'm drunk. I didn't mean to cross any boundaries..."

"No, no, Alex, you're fine...don't worry about it. I'm the one who should be sorry," he told her, taking a bite of the cookie. "Holy TARDIS, these are good!" he cried, and she grinned brightly. "Would you like to come in?" he asked with his mouth full, stepping back and beckoning her to come in, not wanting to draw attention from the crew.

She nodded, stepping into his trailer and closing the door behind her. "Why should you be sorry?" she asked.

"I was just trying to cheer you up-"

"Which you did," she cut him off with a smile. "But continue."

He smiled at her, "Yes but I feel like I'm the one who crossed the boundaries."

"No, no, not at all.. we're both flirty people, we're going to flirt!" she laughed slightly, taking one of her own cookies since she had skipped breakfast.

"That's not what I meant. It's...hard to explain..." guilt had been racking his brain since he had come to his senses. He betrayed Daisy last night. Even if he fought the urge to stay with Alex, he lied to his girlfriend and spent his night lusting after a woman he knew he couldn't have.

"Well, no need to be sorry. Not to me... I actually want to thank you for being such a great friend," she put her hand on his knee, watching as his face grew solemn. She thought that it made him uncomfortable, so she quickly retracted her hand.

"I try... I'm glad we're friends, Alex," he said, stressing it to himself. She took it the wrong way, feeling like he was purposely trying to assure her that they were in the friend zone.

He wasn't, and she hid the damage so well that he didn't even notice how upset that one little phrase had made her.

It wasn't that she wanted to me more than friends that upset her so much. She did not feel that way torwards him, at least she thought she didn't. What upset her was she thought that she made him uncomfortable last night so now he felt like he had to keep her in line with their friendship.

Funny, how they were both apologizing to each other but the only people that they were really upset with were themselves.

"I'm glad we're friends, too," she finally said, rising. "I better get to hair and make-up before I get scorned," she told him, flashing a fake smile and leaving his trailer.

* * *

Matt had managed to fix everything that afternoon. With Daisy, anyway, even though she was completely oblivious that their relationship needed fixing. He had stopped by a flower shop after a flirtless day on set, picking up a boquet of roses.

He had surprised her, and took her out to dinner that night. They talked and laughed and everything seemed just fine.

For Alex, it was different. She spent her evening with family she didn't often see, being polite and kind but keeping to herself. Often someone would ask if she was okay, and she would lie and flash an actress' smile that no one questioned.

She barely touched the dinner that was made for her. She would conversate lightly with her relatives, but all she could think about was Matt. She was taken aback when her aunt asked her how the new co-stars were. Her eyes grew sad, and she faked a smile as she spoke, "They're all wonderful. Sweetest people I've worked with in a long time," she replied honestly.

"Well, we're glad you're working on something here again," her uncle said with a smile, patting her shoulder and sipping his wine. "We miss having you around."

"Yes, I'm glad to be back. Feels like home," she said, remembering she would have to return to America in seven days.

* * *

Matt writhed wide awake in his bed at 3 am. He looked over at Daisy, who lay fast asleep next to him. Sighing, he rose from the bed and walked into the living room, taking the container of cookies Alex had made for him and eating another one guiltlessly. He frowned as he realized how much trouble she must have went through to get these baked before having to be on set. He grabbed his phone, barely having to scroll to find her name on his contact list since her name began with an 'A.'

Alex Kingston, what a beautiful name, he thought. Short for Alexandra or Alexandrea, he assumed. He'd have to ask her later. With a small smile curling onto his lips, he texted her, knowing she wouldn't reply til morning.

_Your cookies are delicious, by the way. You must've gone through a lot of trouble getting up early to make them for me. You didn't have to, but thanks. _

He put his phone down, then took another cookie, crossing his legs as he thought about her. He was taken from his thoughts as his phone suddenly vibrated, and he was shocked to see a reply so quickly. He didn't think she was awake.

_Well, I was late today. Yesterday. However you look at it. You are welcome, and thank you. _She replied.

_Shouldn't you be asleep, Kingston?_

_I could say the same for you._

_Can't sleep._

_Neither can I._

_Something bothering you?_

_No, I'm fine. What about you?_

_Peachy._

_That sounds so sarcastic._

_Ha. Maybe it is. How do you spell your name? Your real name. _

_? That was random, but it's Alexandra._

_I was just having a thought earlier and wanted to know. Beautiful name. It suits you._

Alex blushed slightly, laying flat on her belly and playing footsie with herself_. Really? Thank you. I would say the same for you, but Matt Smith doesn't honestly suit you._

_And why is that?_

_It's so simple. So common, yet you are so...different._

_Is different good?_

She hesitated, but finally replied._ It's wonderful._

He smiled._ So what name do you think would suit me, then, hmm? _

_Hmm...Doctor :) _Alex giggled to herself.

Matt laughed._I'm sure after a while that I will start answering to that, too. _

_After working on ER for the longest time, I began answering to 'Elizabeth.' Which is funny, because it's actually my middle name._

"Alexandra Elizabeth Kingston..." he breathed aloud, smiling at how pretty it sounded._ That sounds lovely. You know, I've never actually watched ER._

_I didn't figure you had. Not your kind of doctor show, aha! Have you seen anything I'm in? Other than Doctor Who, of course._

He laughed yet again, feeling wide awake and giddy as he talked to her. His stomach flopped a bit when he realized the only other thing he saw her in was... _Well, I've seen Moll Flanders._

Alex threw her phone down and buried her face in her hands, blushing a deep scarlet and laughing. She finally picked up her phone, typing back_ Oh my goodness, you HAVEN'T! Anything but that! _

He could only laugh, thinking of that night with so much shame written on his face that he was glad she coudn't see him._ Yea, I watched it the night before I met you actually. I was curious. Not about the sex or anything, just about you and your acting and they had it at the movie gallery so I rented it._

_No wonder you acted so nervous that day we met! You were probably picturing me naked the whole time, oh God! _Alex bit her lip devilishly as she fully realized Matt has seen her naked, still covering her face. She was obviously not shy when it came to taking off her clothes for a role, but it was so different when she knew a friend had seen her in such a fashion.

She has NO idea, Matt mused to himself._ I was trying not to. You landing on top of me repetitively didn't help._

_Well it wasn't my idea!_

_I know it wasn't, because it was my idea._

Alex couldn't help but gasp a little, surprised._ WHAT?! Why didn't you tell me?! And why did you suggest that!?_

_I thought it would be funny... I'm sorry, I never meant to not tell you. Are you mad?_

_No...I'm not mad. Just a little surprised._

_Come on, you have to admit it was funny._

_Yes, it was. And it was quite fun to film. _

_Yes, it was, despite the abuse to my lower...um... well, you know._

She laughed, realizing it had been 30 minutes since they had started speaking. She sighed, realizing how happy and giddy he had made her in those passing minutes. _Yes, I know haha._ _We really need to go to bed. It's 3:30 in the morning._

_I know but I'm wide awake. Funny thing is, I should be tired. I only slept for two hours the other night. I paid an entire night's stay at a hotel to sleep there for two hours._

Alex frowned as she looked at the text. 'Hotel?' she thought to herself. _Why didn't you go home to Daisy?_

Matt sighed, realizing he hadn't told Alex about any of that. With good reason. _It's a long story._

_Come to think about it..why didn't you just invite her to the pub with us?_

_She doesn't like those sorts of things. I've tried. All she does is sit down, play on her phone, and bug me about leaving. _

_Oh well that's a shame...is everything okay with you two?_

_Yeah. We're fine. _

For some reason, Alex felt her stomach drop. She shook it off, sighing._ I'm going to try to go to bed. Goodnight, Matt. See you tomorrow. _

_Today _he corrected. _Sweet dreams, Alexandra. _

Alex frowned as she forced herself to say goodnigt, setting her phone on the counter and laying back into her bed.

Matt felt disheartened as he stopped talking to her, having enjoyed talking to her. He returned to Daisy, cuddling close next to her. It was okay to have a crush on Alex, he finally decided. She was unattainable and uninterested and even if Daisy wasn't in the picture, him and Alex being together would be out of the question. He could quietly admire her and still be with Daisy without anyone's feelings getting hurt. No one had to know. He just had to be careful.


	6. Catching Up With Catwoman and Cleopatra

**I just noticed I've been using the word "season" instead of "series." So you can probably tell that I'm American, aha. :) Sorry for any confusion if I have any UK readers!**

* * *

The texts in her phone from Matt went without response as Alex boarded her plane back to America. She held a book in her hand and a solemn shadow in her eyes. She felt slightly guilty that she ignored his request to come say goodbye, but after yesterday's filming she needed to get a grip on herself.

A whisper from the Doctor to River had caused Matt's lips to brush against her ear, and she reacted outside what the script said. She had grabbed his arm from adrenaline, forcing cameras to cut, then excused herself from set. She returned twenty minutes later to muster up enough acting skills to finish the scene. But how close he had gotten sent shivers down her spine and _aroused_ her. Over the course of two weeks, they had engaged in long conversations, great laughs, and perhaps a little too much flirting. She had thought it all to be innocent, denying how he made her giggle and blush like a school girl. But she could not neglect to aknowledge the dirty thoughts pooling in her mind when he got that incredibly close to her. She felt guilty. She was nearly twenty years older than him and he had Daisy; she felt like she couldn't stress that enough. She convinced herself that her guilty desires were due to her lack of intimate contact and the fact that Matt was incredibly hot. It was all physical attraction, she told herself. She sighed, putting down her book seeing as she was unable to pay attention to it. She just couldn't wait to return to LA and spend some much-needed time with her daughter.

* * *

Matt grew frustrated as he realized Alex would be getting on her plane in five minutes and she hadn't bothered to answer him. He looked over at his phone at the messages he had sent her, feeling foolish.

_Hey, I know you're going to America this morning so would you like to grab coffee with me before your flight? I didn't get the chance to say goodbye to you yesterday since you left immediately after filming.  
__Alex did you get my message?  
__Is everything okay?  
__Did I do something wrong?_

He sat down in the coffee shop all alone, his not-even half-empty macchiato growing cold. He discarded it, leaving the shop and strolling down the streets, wondering what he did to make her so upset. He remembered how odd she had acted yesterday, wondering what had upset her so much when he whispered in her ear. He had tried to talk to her, but she hastily left set and answered his evening phone call with, "I'm not trying to be rude, but I want to be left alone right now."

He didn't think she was being rude; he realized everyone had bad days and needed their space. But after this morning, he was certain that he did something wrong and he didn't know how to fix it.

It was nearly midnight when he finally got a response, and he had pulled from Daisy's kiss just to have a look.

"Um..excuse me?" the young woman said, the gap between her eyebrows and eyelids narrowing as she stared at him, clearly offended.

"Sorry, it could be important," Matt said. And it was, to him.

"Matt, it's midnight. Who's so important that you have to interrupt us?" she huffed, rolling her eyes.

"Oh, I don't know. My mom, my sister, one of my bosses for example," he replied sarcastically.

"Whatever," Daisy snapped, getting up and leaving.

"Wait, Daisy!" Matt started after her, but he heard her car crank before he could even get out the door. He tried flagging her down as she pulled out of the driveway, but it was no use and he wasn't about to drive after her. He rolled his eyes, going back to the living room. He was sure she'd come apologize for it later, wanting to make up. Now, his attention returned to his phone.

_Hello, Matt. I'm sorry for ignoring you earlier._

Matt took a deep breath, anxiety rushing through his veins. _So you were ignoring me._

_I'm really sorry. I've just had a rough couple of days. _

_I know it's something I did. You didn't get upset until we were filming that last scene on the beach._

_It doesn't matter. I don't want to talk about it. _

_It does matter! If I upset you, you need to tell me._

_You didn't upset me.. I upset myself. Please can we just forget about it?_

Matt sighed, reluctant but not willing to get into another fight with someone he cared about. _Okay. But only if you promise to bake me cookies when you come back to film the Pandorica Opens._

_Aha, I will. See you in six weeks._

* * *

Matt rose from bed extra early, quickly heading to set with more pep in his step than usual. Not only was today going to be exciting because they would begin filming the Pandorica Opens, but he would be seeing Alex again. It had been six long weeks and when he messaged her it was almost always about Salome_._

He looked around everywhere after leaving his trailer, only to realize that she was already filming the first scene. He stopped in his tracks and his mouth gaped slightly.

Alex Kingston was in a black, body-hugging cat suit.

Matt couldn't hide the squeak that emitted from his throat, but thankfully no one was close enough to hear him.

She caught his eye, and smiled, causing the cameras to cut. "Give me five minutes!" she requested, before running over to Matt and hugging him tightly. "Matt!" she squealed happily. "Oh, it's so good to see you! How have you been?!"

"It's great...to see you..too..Alex," he managed to say, trying to force away the natural reaction of his body as she held him close in that tantalizing body suit. "And I'm alright... excited to wrap up my first season. And you?"

"I am wonderful! Look at this, can you believe Steven made me wear this?!" she laughed, twirling for him so that he got a glance of the back, which was equally as arousing.

"Yes, I can..." he said lowly, remembering that night a couple of weeks ago he let it slip to Steven about his school-boy crush on Alex. Oh that man was the worst person he coud have told. Moffat was going to have too much fun in his negotiations with the costume designer.

"I have to wear four other outfits in this one episode, it's ridiculous. You should see the Cleopatra one!" she laughed.

Oh he was so _screwed_. He raised his eyebrow, managing a sheepish smile. "At least you get outfit changes. I think I'm married to this suit," he joked, causing her to laugh even more and place her hand on his chest, her fingers adjusting his bow tie in a way that almost made him squirm. He was glad to see her acting happier and relaxed.

"Well at least the suit suits you," she said, biting her lip and looking him up and down, causing him to blush. She seemed completely oblivious to how much he was checking her out, which he was thankful for. "Anyway, I don't think we're filming together today but I will catch up with you later!"

"Yes, later. I look forward to it. Have fun, Catwoman!" he chuckled, sticking his hands in his pockets as she laughed and headed back towards the set.

He continued to watch her, admiring her from afar with a devilish smile and wandering eyes. Eventually, the director requested his presence elsewhere and he headed off to film his own scenes.

* * *

Filming had come to a close, and after changing into high-waist blue shorts and a white tank, Alex made her way over to Matt's trailer. She knocked, smiling as they caught each other's gaze. "Cookies, as promised, Mr. Smith," she told him, biting her lip in the way he so loved and shoving the container towards him.

Matt shrieked happily, grabbing her cookies and holding them up in the air triumphantly. "You didn't forget! Yay, cookies!" he said, smiling widely and slightly

She couldn't help but laugh, shaking her head at him. "You're such a child."

"And I have no shame," he told her, grinning as he popped a cookie in his mouth and grabbed his coat. He looked down at her as he closed his trailer door behind him, realizing how dangerously short her shorts were. Glorious thing, summer weather.

She noticed his lingering gaze on her legs and she couldn't help but blush as she turned her face from him, smiling. "So are you doing anything this afternoon that requires your immediate attention?" she asked.

"Not really. Why?" he asked, hope flaring in his eyes.

"Would you like to come over for just a bit? I have a surprise for you," she gave him a smirk.

"Ooh, I love surprises. Of course I would love to!" he told her. "We're both leaving set now... should we...?" he pulled his arms up and used the cookie container as a steering wheel as he mimed driving a car.

"Well, I took a cab here... if you would like to drive me home, you are perfectly welcome to," she offered, baring her teeth and batting her eyes in the most adorable fashion.

"Of course," he told her, escorting her to his vehicle.

They spent the car ride catching up, talking and laughing playfully. Matt told her how filming the series had went, and gave her insight into his reaction of particular episodes. Alex informed him of recent events of her stay in America, which mainly consisted of spending a lot of time with Salome.

When they arrived at her flat, Alex eagerly jumped out of Matt's vehicle, grabbing his wrist and jolting up the stairs. "God, Alex! This must be some surprise!"he said with a laugh as he ran behind her.

She grinned, opening the door to her flat to see a young blonde in her living room.

"Umm..." Matt said, seemingly confused.

"Thank you, Colette," Alex said, shuffling in her purse to hand the girl some money.

"You're welcome, Miss Kingston. She's in the bathroom at this moment, but," the babysitter got cut off by Salome squealing down the hall. The little girl jumped into Alex's arms happily.

Matt's eyes glistened with joy and he smiled upon first sight of Alex's little girl.

"Hello, sweetie!" Alex said as she held her. However, the nine-year old's attention shifted when she looked over at Matt.

"Mummy, is this Matt?!" she asked with such delight in her voice. Alex nodded. "Yay! I'm so happy to meet you!" she said, jumping down from her mother's hold and clasping her hands together before extending one to him. "I'm Salome!"

"I'm happy to meet you, too, Salome!" Matt said, kneeling down and shaking her hand. "Your mum has told me so much about you!" he told her, tapping the little girl on her nose. "You take after her, I see. What a pretty girl you are," he looked up at Alex with a wink.

Both ladies blushed. Salome fiddled with her hands and batted her eyes in the way her mother often did. "Thank you," she told him in a soft voice. "Would you like to see my paintings?!" she asked happily. "I paint a lot of Doctor Who stuff! It's my favorite show! David Tennant is my favorite Doctor but mummy thinks I'm gonna like you more."

"Does she now?" Matt said matter-of-factly, eyes wincing as he smirked at Alex, who could only roll her eyes and smile as they exchanged a whole conversation with their facial expressions alone. "And of course I would love to see your drawings!" he said excitedly, as Salome squeaked and led him to the spare room where she had brought a multitude of paintings. Matt was actually surprised at the sophistication of her artwork, given her age. "Wow... these are really good, Salome.." he said, smiling as he picked up a painting of the TARDIS.

"Really? You think so?!" she asked, eyes brightening.

"I know so. Your art teacher must be very impressed," he told her, admiring her other drawings as Alex smiled from the doorway.

"Yes, Ms. Nolan is my favorite teacher!" she said, taking a drawing of a woman from the shelf and showing it to him. "This is a picture I drew of her, see!"

Matt gasped, taking the picture and admiring it. He looked back at Alex, who was grinning proudly. "You need to do something about little Miss Claude Monet over here. She is BRILLIANT!"

"Yes, she is," Alex told him, walking over to the two. "It's a lot better than what I can do, though I try."

"Mummy and me always have paint parties all the time! You should have one with us!" Salome bounced up and down. "Please, please, please!"

Alex looked at Matt, cocking her brow and smiling. "I actually arranged a personal painting session with an art studio tonight, if you have time then you are welcome to join us."

"Are you kidding me?! I would love that" Matt smiled brightly.

"Yay!" Salome hugged his arm happily.

"Well, the appointment isn't for another two hours... would you like to get something to eat with us?" she asked.

"Of course. My treat!" Matt said, taking Salome's hand and leading her out.

"Oh, no, I couldn't let you!" Alex said after him.

"Please," he looked at her with those puppy eyes and she sighed, unable to say no.

"Alright, you stubborn git," she rolled her eyes, exiting the building with her daughter and..._friend_.

* * *

The trio spent their evening in the paint studio, enjoying each other's blissful company. Alex and Matt's paintings looked a mess next to Salome's, but they all had good laughs about it.

Salome fell asleep on the car ride home, and Matt and Alex just looked at her then at each other with happy smiles on their faces. "I had a lot of fun with you, tonight, Alex," he whispered to her, wanting nothing more than to reach out and take her hand into his own but he reluctantly refrained.

"Me too," she responded happily, her heart racing as she stared at his handsome face.

"She's wonderful," he spoke of Salome, smiling grandly. "Thank you for letting me meet her. It was a pleasure. Is she here with you for the two-week filming?"

"Actually...I wanted to tell you about that. We're spending the summer here."

Matt looked at her, his eyes widening and his mouth curling into the biggest smile she had seen yet. "That's great!" he forced his voice to remain a whisper despite how excited he was. "We're gonna have a lot of fun, the three of us!"

She chuckled. "I look forward to it," she told him, stepping out of the car as they pulled into her place. Matt reached into his back seat and delicately lifted Salome into his arms, careful not to wake her as they walked up the steps to return to Alex's home.

Alex couldn't help but smile in admiration as she watched Matt carry her little girl. There was something so sweet, so loving in the way he held her in his arms...and it made her feel, even for just a small moment, complete.

Matt placed her into bed, tucking her in and kissing her forehead. "Sweet dreams," he whispered, then he turned to Alex only to notice that she was crying. His eyes widened and he stepped out of Salome's bedroom, clasping her cheeks and staring into her eyes, wiping the tears that fell from them. "Alex, Alex what's wrong?" he breathed, concern written on his features.

"N-nothing," she choked, looking away and trying to step back, but he simply pulled her into a tender hug.

"Shh," he comforted her as he buried his fingers into her curls, holding her tightly as she sobbed quietly. "It's okay..you can talk to me."

She sobbed slightly harder. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I'm such a mess," she told him, clinging onto the back of his shirt. "I should not be crying because I'm not sad...that's just it...I'm _completely_ and incandescently happy right now."

Matt smiled at this, pulling back to look in her eyes once more. "So...it's happy tears, right?" he asked.

"I suppose it's complicated," she laughed through her tears, pulling away from him. "You should probably go. I'll see you on set tomorrow," she told him.

Alex's emotions always confused him, but they never scared him away. She had been through more than he could even imagine and he couldn't possibly fathom the amount of pain she went through that scarred her so emotionally. She had so much baggage, but he didn't care.

He wrapped her in a final hug, burying his face into her blonde curls and relishing their scent. "Alright. I'll see you tomorrow," he didn't argue, and with that he left her flat, leaving her smiling and teary-eyed and so very, very confused about her emotions.

* * *

The lighting was dim and red as Matt held a camera in front of his face, going on about how he adored Alex and that she was brilliant.

"We're going to see Alex Kingston," the young actor said as he stepped torwards the older woman, smiling brightly as he saw her in her Cleopatra headdress. He could not wait to see the rest. "Who, look, it's not just normal Alex Kingston as River Song...it's Cleopaaattraaa! That's who it is, the Kingston as Cleopatra!" Alex smiled at him, flipping her hair in a sassy, girly way. "How does it feel to be Cleopatra, Alex?" he asked her, admiring how insanely beautiful she looked.

"It feels uniquely royal," she answered

"Absolutely."

"I'm loving it."

"Good."

"I don't think I want to take this off."

"Really?" he asked, cocking his brow and smirking at her in that sort of 'Oh, I'd love to take it off of you,' sort way.

"And um..." she began, feeling slightly nervous as he looked at her like that.

He cut her off, "I mean, to be honest, out of all of us I think you do the best costume-wise, don't you?" he told her with complete honesty, remembering yesterday's filming where she wore a Chinese dress as well as a sexy grunge outfit for filming. And of course how could he forget the cat suit, her Time of Angels dress, and army uniform? "You get all the cool, sort of sexy, sassy ones.. or is that_ you_, in them?" he asked, not hesitating to call her sexy in a way that took her a while to realize and made her begin to stumble with her words when she finally did.

"Darling," she finally cut him off, the expression on his face lighting up as she called him that. "I'm a bit afraid I might look like mutton dressed as lamb in this!" she used the British informal to basically say that the costume would suit a much younger woman.

"Nooooooooooo!" he scorned her, cutting off the camera and setting it down. He grabbed her shoulders, shaking her playfully. "Alex, shut up, you look stunning!"

She blushed and laughed, holding onto her headdress to keep it from toppling over as he shook her lightly. "Thank you, darling," she stared into his eyes, her heart racing as she realized how his face lit up once more and the fact that his hands were still on her arms, though they had skimmed down to her shoulders.

"I like it when you call me that," he told her softly, and for a moment they just stared. Then, realizing they were in company, Matt cleared his throat and stepped back. "I should probably go," he told her, patting her arm and leaving.

"See you around.." she said, releasing a deep breath, having forgotton to breathe for a moment. What was he doing to her? She pushed it out of her mind, knowing she needed to focus on filming.

* * *

**I rewatched that Cleopatra thing between Matt and Alex at least 20 times to get that last part right! They are SO cute and I love how he blatantly calls her sexy on camera. :)**


	7. He Deserves Better

Matt walked on set fully dressed and polished. A frown came to his face as he looked around, noticing Alex was absent when she should have been here. They were filming the last few scenes of the Pandorica Opens before doing some promo shots, and Alex most definitely should at least be in hair and makeup already.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" he heard Alex's voice in panic, and he whipped around to see the woman fumbling over to Steven with Salome in her arms. "Babysitter dropped out on me last minute, I promise she won't be too much of a bother!" she looked at her daughter, who pouted slightly as her mom gave her a warning look.

"I'll behave, I promise," she said in monotone, before looking over at Matt who was walking towards the group. "MATTY!" she cried, wriggling out of her mother's grasp and running into his arms.

"Ello, princess!" he greeted her with a smile, hoisting her into his arms and spinning her. She giggled and hugged him tightly.

"She won't be a problem," Steven assured her with a small smile. "Now get over to hair and makeup."

Alex nodded, looking over at her daughter worriedly.

"It's okay, Kingston, I'll watch her for you," Matt told her with a smile.

"Thank you," she told him, smiling in return before heading off to hair and makeup.

* * *

Alex shot her scenes first. Salome sat perched on Matt's shoulders like a little bird, her arms crossed over his head as she watched her mom perform. She didn't even flinch as the dalek was brought onto set, although Matt held her legs tighter just in case.

"REC-ORDS IN-DI-CATE THAT YOU WILL SHOW MER-CY. YOU ARE AN ASSOCIATE OF THE DOC-TOR," the backtrack was played.

"I'm River Song," Alex said curtly, whipping out her blaster. "Check your records again!"

"MER-CY!"

"Say it again."

"MER-CY!"

"One. More. Time,"

"MER-CYYYYY!" then, the backtrack and the cameras cut.

"Whoooo! Go mum!" Salome clapped and cheered with the rest of the crew. Matt laughed as the little girl bounced with joy. She loved seeing her mom work.

Alex looked over at Salome, smiling brightly and doing a cute little bow. After doing a few more takes, she stepped over to the pair. "I see my daughter has turned you into a bird post," she chuckled.

"I am perfectly okay with that," Matt said as he gripped the young girl's legs that were draped over his shoulders.

"Matt, Alex, take a twenty then meet us back on set!" the director told them, and the two nodded. Salome slid herself from Matt's shoulders with her mother's assistance, before taking each of their hands and walking in between them.

Alex and Matt could only smile at each other, thoughts racing through each of their minds.

This was a feeling unlike any other Matt had felt. He couldn't help but feel like a father and husband as he walked with the two girls. It was but a mere taste of what this life would be like, but it was so sweet that he drifted away into a daze, indulging in that simple thought.

For Alex, it was different. She had already tasted this life. She had been a mother for nine years, and a wife twice. But walking with her daughter and Matt brought a new, fresh taste that made her head swirl. Her initial attraction to him had only grown as she watched him play with Salome and treat her like his own. He was so surprisingly good with children. Her and Matt continuously caught one another's eyes and would sharply look away with sheepish smiles on their faces.

The three sat in the cafeteria, initially not saying a word as they ate breakfast. They were quite the sight to see; sitting there eating breakfast together like they were a family. But of course, they had to be interrupted.

Karen and Arthur plopped themselves down beside Salome, introducing themselves as the child greeted them politely.

"I like your voice," Salome told Karen with a pretty smile.

"Well thank you! Aren't you sweet? I like yours. It's so...American," Karen laughed.

"Well that's where I grew up," Salome explained, before switching to a British accent, "But I've listened to my mum and family enough so that I can do this perfectly!"

Everyone laughed and began clapping.

"Oh my God, that's brilliant!" Matt laughed softly, taking another bite of his pancakes.

"I can do yours, too!" Salome said in a Scottish accent, looking at Karen who's eyes widened as she laughed. The young girl could only giggle as the four adults marveled at her.

Then, Alex felt something upon her leg. She glanced at her knee, only to see Matt's hand grazing gently across it. Her pulse automatically quickened.

Matt drew his hand back immediately as their eyes caught, but he smiled as he saw her blushing. The small gesture went unnoticed by Karen and Arthur, who were across the table from them and focused intently on Salome. Alex took her attention from Matt and did the same, paying attention to only her daughter before informing the group that they needed to return to set.

The walk back to the set was quiet, at least between Matt and Alex. Karen, Arthur, and Salome all engaged in conversation while Alex and Matt exchanged hair-raising glances. She didn't know if his touch had been an accident or intentional, but it had left her mind very confused and her heart still racing.

* * *

For the remainder of filming the finale, Alex brought Salome on set every day. She had charmed just about everyone between cast and crew, so they certainly didn't mind having her there.

After filming had wrapped, Alex wasn't due to return until the end of July in which they would be filming in Utah. Until then, she had a whole European summer to enjoy. Of course, she was completely stuck. Salome had grown such a fondness to Matt that she wanted to be around him all the time and when he could, Matt always made time for his girls. Alex always suggested remaining indoors, however, never wanting to draw attention to themselves. She could only imagine the crazy stories the press would come up with. So, their nights together mainly consisted of princess movies, finger painting, and home cooking. When Salome would grow tired, Matt would tuck her in, bid Alex farewell and leave. Everytime he did, it left a space in her heart and she didn't know why.

When Matt's first episode of Doctor Who aired a month after finale filming had closed, he arranged a house party and invited most of the cast and some crew members, including Alex and Salome.

Daisy had, of course, dolled herself up for the occasion. "Do I look alright, honey?" she asked as she walked up to her boyfriend, who was preparing the party food. He looked at her and smiled.

"More than alright," he said a bit too truthfully. It was just a house party; all they were going to be doing was watching an hour's worth of Doctor Who so she was very overdressed. However, she did look "...beautiful," he added, pulling her waist in as he kissed her.

She smiled into his kiss, but frowned as she heard the doorbell. "Those would be your guests," she said with a slight laugh and an eyeroll.

"Right," Matt said, rushing to the door and opening it to see Steven and Sue. "Of course you two would show up first! The Moff is never late!"

Steven chuckled. "Always early, if I can manage it."

"And Sue, you look gorgeous!" Matt said, hugging her lightly. "Glad you could make it! Sit down anywhere or help yourself to some of the food."

Matt and Daisy played host-and-hostess as the guests arrived shortly after one another. Karen arrived with her boyfriend and Arthur arrived with a friend. The director and producers came as well, and eventually Alex and Salome came, too.

"Alex! Salome!" Matt greeted them both with a tight hug. The Kingston had dressed casually; just a long-sleeved white blouse, a cute little string tied into a bow tie (nice touch, he thought) and a pair of black pants with converse. She held her daughter close beside her. Salome had dressed in a Doctor Who shirt that Matt could only smile at. It had David Tennant's face on the front, but nethertheless he complimented her on it, "Love the shirt, princess," he told her as he set her down from his hug. "But that'll be my face soon, right?" he asked with hope glistening into his eyes. She only laughed and nodded.

"I'll get one for her as soon as its released in stores," Alex promised.

"Ah, you might have to get one for yourself," Matt winked, stepping back to invite her inside.

Alex laughed, hitting his arm lightly. God he loved her laugh. "Perhaps I will!"

Daisy looked down at Salome, a confused expression slithering on her features. She walked over, forcing a smile as she introduced herself. "Well hello! I don't believe we've met. I'm Daisy, Matt's girlfriend!"

Alex's heart dropped to her stomach in a way that it shouldn't have. She managed to smile and extend her hand, but before she could respond, Salome spoke first.

"Girlfriend?" the little girl asked, clearly surprised and seemingly a bit hurt.

The adults looked down at Salome, all appearing a bit confused.

"You never said you had a girlfriend, Matty," Salome pouted as she eyed Daisy unpleasantly.

Daisy seemed even more confused at the fond manner in which Salome spoke to Matt. She surely didn't expect them to be close.

"Ah, well, it never came up, sweetie," Alex said, bending down and rubbing her daughter's shoulders in comfort. "Come, let's sit down..." she moved her daughter over towards the couch.

"Never came up?" Daisy asked softly, cocking her brow. "Never came up when? She said that like you're around often."

"Well, I am. Salome came on set a lot and after that I went to Alex's place and we all hung out and such," he explained, scratching his head.

"You never mentioned it to me," she said, crossing her arms and raising her brows with obvious distaste.

"I tell you I go out with cast mates all the time, Daze," Matt told her with a tired sigh.

She seemed to calm down, tucking a hair behind her ear. "Alright then. Well, what are we gonna do about the kid?"

"What do you mean?" Matt's eyes narrowed and his jaw extended slightly.

"Well, I thought we'd have some drinks tonight so she can't stay here with a bunch of sozzled adults."

Anger flared in his eyes. "I never said we'd be having drinks. We can have a simple house party without alchohol."

"But-" she began, but he cut her off harshly.

"Salome stays here and the alchohol stays in the cooler, that's final. This is a very special night to me, Daisy. Please don't start this with me tonight," he said, and with that he returned to the living room and changed the channel to BBC. "Alright, here it goes!" he announced to everyone, sitting beside Salome and leaving a space for Daisy to sit.

When the episode was over, everyone stood and clapped. Matt could not stop smiling as everyone complimented him on a job well done.

"If anyone was to fill David's shoes, I'm glad it was you," Steven shook his hand. "Well done, Matt."

Matt's heart swelled with pride as he turned the handshake into a hug, thanking Steven for giving him the part.

"And let's not forget the fantastic Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill, everyone!" Moffat turned the attention to the pair of actors, and everyone congradulated them as well.

"Matty, can I talk to you?" Salome asked, tugging at his flannel shirt.

"Of course, princess," he said with a smile, but he exchanged slightly worried looks with Alex.

Salome took his hand and led him outside onto the terrace. She sat down in a lawn chair, and he did the same. "What's going on, love?" he asked.

"Well first of all, you did really good on the episode," she told him with a smile, before looking away.

"Thank you...and second?" he spoke, before she continued.

"And second...why do you have a girlfriend if you like my mom?"

His eyes widened. He became flustered as his face searched for a smile. "W-what ever do you mean?" he asked with a covering chuckle.

"Just because I'm nine doesn't mean I'm stupid. I know you like her," she stated, her voice thick with confidence of what she was saying. "I'm an expert in princess movies and you look at mommy like the prince looks at his princess."

Matt looked down and heaved a sigh. "It's complicated."

"So you admit it!?" Salome cried softly, finally smiling.

"Yes...yes, Salome, I do... but you can't tell your mum. You can't tell _anyone_, do you understand?"

"But why not?" Salome asked, her smile fading.

"Like I said. It's complicated. I know you're a smart girl but some things only an adult can understand."

She looked down, becoming quiet and fiddling with her hands.

"You have to promise me you won't tell your mum," he broke the silence, grabbing her hand gently.

"I promise," she said solemnly, keeping her eyes at the floor,

Alex watched the scene unfold outside. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but Salome seemed very upset. Come to think of it, she had been so excited to be here until she met Daisy.

The two emerged from the terrace and Salome quickly rushed to her mother. "Can we go now, mum?"

"You don't want to stay?" she asked with a frown.

"No... I want to go home."

Suddenly, Alex knew that something was very, very wrong. Salome took any chance she got to be around Matt, but now she just wanted to leave when they had a whole afternoon to enjoy. She looked over at Matt, confused. "Well, I guess we'll be leaving then."

"See you later, Kingston.." he spoke softly, stepping over and hugging them both. "Goodbye, Salome."

"Goodnight, Matt..." Alex said softly, leading Salome out the door.

When Salome and Alex were finally in the car, the mother took a deep breath and began, "Alright, what's going on?"

"I can't tell you," Salome said, looking away.

"Can't tell me?" Alex laughed slightly. "What can't you tell your mother?" Salome was silent. "Is it about Daisy?" Salome nodded. "Daisy and Matt together?" She nodded again. Finally, Alex sighed. "I think I know what's going on here."

Salome's head quickly snapped around until she faced her mother. "You do?!" she exclaimed, her eyes widening.

"I remember what it was like when I had my first crush," Alex said with a slight smile, keeping her eyes on the road so that she didn't see the disgusted look on Salome's face.

"Umm...mom..."

"Now I know this might make you uncomfortable, but we have to talk about this," Alex insisted. "I know you like Matt but sweetie he is too old for you."

"Mom," she tried to interrupt, but Alex continued speaking.

"I get that he seems like the perfect man and all. Prince Charming, for sure," Alex smiled as she thought of Matt fondly. At least her daughter had good tastes in men,_ so she thought_.

"MOM!" Salome screamed, and Alex finally stopped talking and paid attention to her. "I DON'T like Matty! That's not what I wanted to talk to him about!"

"Oh? Then what is it?"

Salome was trapped. She didn't want to lie to her mom, but she didn't want to break her promise to Matt, either. "I don't like him like that...I just...don't want him to be with that lady," she said, which was entirely truthful. "I think he deserves better."

"That's not your place to say, sweetie," Alex told her after a long silence. But to be perfectly honest, Alex Kingston had never agreed with her daughter more in her entire life.


	8. Kiss Kiss

The parties at Matt's house continued on Saturdays everytime a new episode aired. Daisy eventually lost interest and began going out with friends instead, which was perfectly fine with Salome and Alex, seeing as they didn't enjoy her company at all. Other than Saturdays they didn't really see Matt much.

Salome clapped throughout the Time of Angels episode, constantly telling her mom how awesome she was. Of course, it wasn't long after the episode ended before the question came up, "Mom, who's River Song?"

Everyone in the room looked at the little girl, smirks curling on their faces.

"I can't tell you, sweetie," Alex said with a coy grin, running her fingers through her daughter's hair.

"Come on, please mommy you can tell me! I'm your daughter!" Salome pleaded, grabbing Alex's hands tightly as everyone, including Steven, laughed.

"I don't even think she knows who she is, princess," Matt told her, looking up at Alex with absolute honesty in his eyes.

"Actually..." Alex began, glancing over at Steven with a knowing expression. "I do."

"WHAT?!" Karen and Matt shouted, slightly jumping from their seats.

"Steven told me yesterday," Alex elaborated as the mastermind nodded.

"NOT FAIR!" Matt and Karen protested like children, glaring at Steven. Matt crossed his arms, pointing at Alex before saying, "How come she gets to know?!"

"Spoilers," Alex answered Steven's question, patting Matt on the knee in comfort.

He relaxed at her touch but still glared into her eyes. "Oh you're gonna spill Kingston. Eventually."

"Am I now?" Alex asked, cocking a brow and biting her lip playfully. "How do you figure?"

"I am going to make you," he said in a low, sultry voice, his eyes boring into hers in a way that made her spine tingle.

Alex laughed heartily, a dirty thought passing through her mind and showing on her face, causing him to smirk devilishly. They were flirting with their eyes. "You can try to 'make' me all you want, but I won't say a word," she told him.

"You better not," Steven told her, still smiling.

Salome leaned close into Matt's ear, whispering, "It's okay, Matty. We'll team up against her and get her to tell us!" Alex overheard and merely laughed, shaking her head at them.

Minutes passed and the guests began to leave, but Salome excused herself for a suspiciously long audience with the restroom, leaving Alex and Matt alone. They smiled politely at each other, before Alex noticed the red heels hanging above the fireplace. She laughed at that, remembering the day he took them home. "I can't believe you kept those!" she told him, pointing at them. "So are you going to tell me the real reason you wanted them? Because I really don't buy the whole, 'Oh I just think they would look cool' excuse."

"I don't know what you're talking about, Kingston," he told her with an innocent smile, running his hand through his bangs.

"I secretly think you put them on and dance around in them," she teased him, unable to keep a straight face as she laughed throughout the whole sentence.

Matt leaned back on the sofa and laughed, putting his hand over his stomach. "They don't even fit me!"

"Aha! So you admit that you've tried them on!" Alex said, her mouth widening as she pointed her finger at his face.

"NOOOOO,"he said, pulling himself together from another fit of laughter to explain, "I just know those little old things wouldn't fit my massive feet!" he lifted up his feet, wiggling his toes and making her laugh even harder.

"Let's have a look, see!" Alex rose from the couch, skipping across the room and taking the shoes from the fireplace. She ran back over to where Matt sat, holding out one of the heels and asking, "May I?"

He laughed, holding his foot out for her. "You can try," he said with a grin, and she began laughin wildly as she tried to force the feminine Louis Vuittons over his man feet. "SEE! You can't even get my toes in! HA!" now he was the one pointing at Alex, who wriggled her nose in defeat.

"However, they WILL fit you," he said coyly, reaching for her waist and setting her on the couch. His face became dangerously close to hers, causing her breath to hitch. He smirked at her, getting down on his knee and taking one of the heels. He slipped it onto her foot as they gazed into each other's eyes. "Perfect fit," he said in a tone just above a whisper, and just like Salome had mentioned a few weeks ago, he was doing it again; staring at Alex the way a prince stares at his princess. "You blushing there, Cinderella?" he asked with a toothy grin as he noticed the scarlet patches on her cheeks.

She looked away from him, trying to wipe the wide smile off her face by rubbing her lips together. It was no use. "I like your shoes," she began, her eyes returning to his as he slipped the other shoe on her bare foot. "Those were the first words you ever said to me."

His smile widened as he returned to his seat on the couch beside her. "Indeed they were. Those shoes do look nice on you," he told her in a husky voice, glancing at the heels as she clicked them together. "And they remind me of you everytime I look at them."

"Oh?" Alex began to blush again. "Is that why you kept them, then? They make you think of me?"

"Perhaps," he told her, and the seriousness that was written on his face made her pulse quicken and her smile wash from her face. She suddenly realized Salome had been in the bathroom for a very long time.

"Well I'm glad you spare me a thought every once and a whille!" she flashed him a nervous smile, smacking him on his knee playfully before rising and walking to the bathroom. "Salome?! Are you okay in there, sweetie?"

Salome, having just been listening at the door, opened it quickly. She was grinning madly and nodding. "Yes, mommy, I'm fine!" she told her, skipping past her mother and giving Matt a knowing look.

Realization washed over Matt's face as he knew exactly what Salome was trying to do. He placed his tongue on the wall of his cheek, eyeing her with a slight smile tugging at his lips. _That little diabolical angel_, he thought as he looked at her.

"We had better leave. Got to get this thing into bed," Alex took Salome by her shoulders and held her tightly.

Matt frowned slightly, but nodded. He walked them to the door, hugging both of them and bidding them goodnight.

Their hearts both raced as they parted, Alex left with a swarm of confusing feelings and Matt left with a smirk that he could not wipe from his face. Uh-oh.

* * *

Summer passed quickly and before they knew it, July had come to an end. The cast and crew had a plane booked for California, where Alex would leave Salome with Florian, and then the crew would depart on another flight to Utah. Salome insisted on sitting next to Matt the entire flight to California, even though she slept through most of it. Alex and Matt sat on the same row, Salome in between them as they read the script for The Impossible Astronaut.

Both of their mouths gaped in shock. At this point, Alex already knew who she was, but she had no idea that _this_ would happen.

"The Doctor can't die!" Alex exclaimed in a hushed whisper as she looked at Matt. The pair of them looked over at Steven, who was grinning madly. Karen and Arthur (in the seats behind them) piped up as well, and the four exchanged remarks of disbelief.

"Just keep reading..." Matt said as he glared at Steven. He read a few more pages, hearing a laugh from Arthur and a scoff from Alex. "Oh great, as if me dying wasn't enough, I have to get slapped by Kingston!"

"Is there any way I can fake that?" Alex laughed, putting her hand to her temple

"Nope!" Steven called from a few seats away.

"I'm sorry," she breathed to Matt, reaching over and patting his knee.

Matt sighed, shaking his head and telling her that he would be fine.

A few pages later, Alex's face became beet red. "Steven I am going to kill you!" she exclaimed as softly as she could, trying not to wake Salome.

Moffat looked at her, innocently asking, "What?"

"I TOLD you not to put the Mrs. Robinson thing in there!" she glared, hearing Matt, Karen, and Arthur all laugh.

"Oh, come on, Kingston. It's a compliment. Mrs. Robinson was the epitome of sexy, you know," he told her, grinning as he stared at her. "I think it suits you," he continued to shamelessly flirt.

Alex grinned at him, batting her eyes in an adorable fashion. "Thank you, Benjamin!"

"You're welcome, Mrs. Robinson," Matt stared at her seductively.

"Could Benjamin and Mrs. Robinson be a little more quiet?" they heard Salome mutter with her eyes still closed. Alex and Matt looked each other, concealing the laughter that was written on their faces before going back to their scripts.

"I'm so confused," Karen whispered halfway through the script.

"I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who knows what's going on!" Alex laughed softly at them, shaking her head.

Matt leaned in close to her, trying to avoid catching Moffat's attention again. "What do I have to do to get you to spill?"

"Aha! There's nothing you can do. My lips are sealed," Alex told him, taking her fingers and pretending to zip her lips up and lock them. God that was cute, Matt thought.

"Please Alex!" Karen pleaded, pouting.

"I can't! I really can't! Oh, but I can't wait for you all to find out!" Alex grinned with the knowledge teeming behind her sparkling eyes.

"Why do you get to know anyway?" Arthur said half-seriously, heaving a sigh.

"Spoilers!" Alex said, and everyone laughed lightly before returning to reading their scripts.

* * *

"I'll see you soon, princess," Matt knelt down in front of Salome, kissing her forhead softly and hugging her.

"I'll miss you Matty!" she whined, returning the hug with a tight grip. "Promise to call?"

"Of course. You be good," he finally released her, toying with a brunette strand of her hair before looking up at Alex. "See you back at the airport, Kingston. Until the next time, Salome."

"Bye!" the girls said simultaneously, before Alex escorted her daughter to the cab.

The next time Matt saw Alex, they were in Utah. He, like mostly everyone else, had slept through the flight. They arrived at the hotel close to midnight. Alex moved her things into a room next to Matt's, and when his eyes caught hers she seemed sad. However, she had just woken up after a very long flight so he figured she was probably just tired.

The cast met in the lobby the next morning, having a complimentary breakfast before boarding the bus.

The scene they would be filming was the picnic on the beach. Matt gazed into Alex's face between takes as they all talked and laughed. The picnic setting, her fresh scent, and those luscious curls sent Matt into a daze.

"Matt," the director said firmly, and Matt shook his head and pulled himself from the trance that Alex's curls had put him in.

"OH, me! That was my line...sorry, Alex..your hair is so distracting," he laughed.

"Oh, it's my hair!" she laughed, fluffing it slightly. "Sorry, darling."

"No need," he told her, biting his lip and staring into her eyes before the cameras rolled again.

The next day, they filmed the slap.

"It's okay, go for it," Matt encouraged Alex, but her features were crumpled up and she hesitated. "I promise you, I've been slapped by many a woman. Can't be that bad."

"Okay," she said hesitantly, before the cameras cut on and she whacked him gently across the face.

"Alex you're going to have to hit a bit harder than that," the director told her as the crew chuckled.

"It was hard enough for me!" Matt said, crossing his arms.

"Alright, take two!"

She slapped him much harder this time, but the hit still didn't satisfy the take. A few takes later and Matt was getting very cross. Alex kept muttering apologies and if it weren't for her sweet face and adorable expressions, he would be much more irritated. Finally, they got the take they wanted. Alex pulled Matt into a tight hug, whispering a final apology so close to his ear that it made every hit completely worth it. He couldn't help his eyes from fluttering shut as her lips brushed against his lobe, which caused a confused expression to appear on her face as she pulled back. "Matt?" he said, waking him from his daze.

"Oh, right. I'm fine... it's quite alright Kingston," he smiled at her, his eyes lingering on the lips that had just graced his cartledge. What he wouldn't give to take those lips into his own.

Filming was long and tedious, so outside of filming most of the actors just slept. When shooting the Impossible Astronaut wrapped up on the eighth day in Utah, the actors were given scripts for The Day of the Moon. Karen, Arthur, Matt, and Alex all went into Alex's hotel room to do a read-through of the script together.

It was long but brilliant, filled with action and witty lines of an epic proportion. Arthur read faster than anyone, Alex close behind him. Matt and Karen were still a page behind when Arthur looked at Matt and Alex, his eyes widening.

Alex saw it soon after and looked at Arthur, her eyes even wider than his. Her heart pounded and she looked straight at Matt. "What?" Matt asked as he saw the bewildered expression on her face.

She gulped. "Keep reading," she said, shakily.

Moments later, there he was. _River Song pulls the Doctor in and kisses him. _

"Oh..." Matt said, blush creeping onto his cheeks. Karen gasped as she read it, too, looking at the pair of on-screen lovers in shock.

Alex knew that she would be playing his love interest, but from the future so she assumed that Steven wouldn't have anything too romantic happen between them. She knew that River was the Doctor's wife, but she had assumed that most of their romance would be off-screen until they found someone older to play the next Doctor.

Matt didn't know how he was going to cope with this. He had at least a week to deal with the fact that he was going to kiss Alex Kingston. But that was just it, _he was going to kiss Alex Kingston_! Nerves wracked his body and he found himself staring at her lips again, not caring if she noticed for he was too wrapped into his own thoughts.

"Well, we knew it would happen eventually," Arthur broke the ice.

"I can't imagine you kissing!" Karen said truthfully with a laugh.

"Neither can I..." Alex said with an expressionless face, twisting her body so that she was no longer looking at Matt. "Anyway, I'm going to read the rest of this script then go to bed."

The others did the same, but Alex and Matt could hardly keep their thoughts from that kiss as they finished the remainder of the script.

Filming Day of the Moon took longer than expected due to the sudden change in Matt and Alex's chemistry. Everytime they shot scenes together, they seemed nervous. They could hardly make eye contact and when they did their eyes would end up lingering over each other's lips. Matt didn't really notice that Alex had been different, but Alex definitely noticed that Matt was acting just as nervous as she was. Her mind flooded with negative thoughts about how he probably didn't want to kiss someone old enough to be his mother. She felt that things between her and Matt were awkward now that they had to kiss, and she was almost angry at Steven for possibly ruining her friendship with Matt. She focused so much on how she thought he felt about the kiss, that she rarely stopped to think how she felt about it.

The idea of kissing Matt made her feel guilty for the simple fact that she wanted to kiss him. Little did she know that he wanted to kiss her, too.

* * *

I can't do this. I can not do this. I can NOT do this,

Matt thought to himself as he paced on set just minutes before they filmed the kiss. _She's kissed so many actors; she's probably a brilliant kisser. Oh God. What if she doesn't like it? Oh, right, it's acting, she's not supposed to like it. But I want her to like it. Not that she would. She'd laugh if she knew how I felt. _

Alex could not even look at Matt, focusing on pulling herself together as she practiced her lines. She was trembling, her face pale and her eyes wide in anticipation. She had kissed many actors without feeling this before, so why was she so nervous about kissing Matt?

It took several takes for the actors to film their lines leading into the kiss, but inevitably they came face-to-face for the scene. Alex was hesitant when she saw the look of uncertainty on Matt's face. Pulse racing and adrenaline spiked, she pulled him in and their lips met. Matt moaned into her mouth, his nerves racking through his body as his arms flailed involuntarily. The producers exchanged smiles, assuming that this was Matt's personal touch on acting out the scene. They could not be more wrong, as Matt was so very, very nervous. He gained his ground quickly however, pulling her in by the shoulders and deepening the kiss. She shrieked, having kept her mouth still until this point and caught off guard when he pried her mouth open with ridiculously soft lips. Matt felt like he was on fire, cooled only by the sensation of fresh mint on her breath. Alex allowed herself to slip into bliss, surprised by the passion that Matt kissed her with. He kissed her just like she was some twenty-something year old and for a brief moment, she allowed herself to forget their age gap and enjoy his sweet taste. When she broke the kiss, all knowledge that they were on a set had completely slipped her mind and she forgot her lines. They just stared at one another, hearts pounding in their chest and mouths slightly ajar in amazement of what was just shared. The director yelled cut, and they had to film it again. This time, Matt was more forceful. He didn't flail his arms this time but instead pulled her in and kissed her with a longing passion. Cameras cut quicker this time, and they warned Matt to take the passion down a notch. Alex giggled at him, and he just blushed and whispered 'sorry,' more to Alex than to them. They kissed several times over the span of twenty minutes, giggling and touching one another fondly between takes. Finally, everyone was satisfied and filming came to a close.

Matt and Alex just laughed, wrapping each other in a firm hug. "I hope that wasn't too traumatic for you, sweetie." Alex said softly in his ear before pulling from the embrace.

Matt cocked a brow at her, his eyes widening as if she were insane. "Traumatic? Not at all. Why would it be traumatic?" he told her, his hand still touching her arm as he stared at her magnificent lips.

"I just thought it might be awkward for you to kiss someone my age," she told him, smile faultering slightly.

Had Matt not been so giddy from kissing her, he probably would be much more cross. He opened his mouth, then tightened it again, looking away from her with an eye roll before answering her with, "Alex, to be fair, you don't look your age at all. And you're a wonderful kisser," he said, bopping her on the nose playfully.

Her eyes widened and he had her pulse racing again. "Thank you, you're pretty amazing yourself," she replied honestly, breathlessly, her cheeks glowing as he complimented her. "I'm impressed."

His grin became wider than ever. _She liked it_.

After staring at one another with smiles, Alex began to fumble with her fingers and broke their eye contact, muttering, "We had better get going. I have a flight to California tomorrow and you a flight to England."

His heart dropped as he realized he wouldn't be seeing her for a while after tomorrow. "Alright. But we're getting coffee tomorrow morning," he told her, still smiling.

She chuckled softly, nodding in agreement. "Deal. See you tomorrow," she hugged him, basking in the warm feeling of intimacy just briefly before heading back to her trailer. The pounding in her heart and breathless feeling he left her with was no longer deniable; she was hopelessly falling for Matthew Robert Smith.

* * *

**Thank goodness I finally got this written! I wrote the kiss scene FOUR TIMES and misfortune would always cause me to hit backspace or the internet cut off and EVERYTHING got erased. On the bright side, I think it's as perfect as it's gonna get. :3 I was highly anticipating putting this chapter up and I hope my lovely Mattex shippers squee with joy that they finally somewhat got somewhere. Haha. Thank you to all my lovely reviewers! Muah!**


	9. Not A Pretty Story

**Okay, so everything is going to get REALLY deep so prepare yourselves. I'm sure if you're a fan of Alex, you know about her relationship with Ralph so this episode is just gonna dig into that a little bit, hope you don't mind! Also, the title is an anagram for NAPS, for certain reasons. :) Enjoy!**

* * *

Wet curls cascaded down Alex's naked shoulders as she brushed through them gently. She hummed happily this morning, as she had been doing every morning of every other week since returning to California. She blow-dried her curls until they were wind-swept and beautiful, adding just enough make-up so that she would feel comfortable when talking to _him._

Every week that Salome was over, she had Skype calls with Matt. She would get her mother to set it up, and would sit on her lap and just talk about school, her painting, and of course the latest Doctor Who episode. Matt was so good with her daughter, and it further pushed thoughts into her mind that she had tried to block out. It was undeniable after the day they filmed the kiss; she liked Matt as more than a friend and she_ knew _it. But she knew fawning over him was wrong. He was twenty years her junior and had a girlfriend. Despite how distasteful she found Daisy Lowe to be, she still respected the boundaries of a relationship. Not to mention she thought Matt would find it gross. He flirted with her, yes, but then again he would flirt with the 70-year-old make-up artist or a random stranger or even a fish. He complimented her, but he was just kind. He often gave Steven's wife and Karen compliments as well. He was so sweet to her, but Alex had learned that Matt was just a genuinely nice person. That made her crush grow even more and she hated herself for it.

"Salome, it's morning, wake up," Alex said softly as she turned her daughter's bedroom light on. She frowned. Normally her daughter jumped out of bed, eager to Skype with Matt. But she rolled over and groaned. "Salome? Are you okay?" she rushed over, sitting on the bed and rolling her back over so that she could see her face.

"I don't feel well, mommy," she moaned, barely fluttering her eyes open.

"Oh, no... do you need to go to the doctor?" she asked, placing a hand over her forehead.

"Doctor Who?" Salome asked, managing a small smile.

Alex laughed lightly. "I see you haven't lost your sense of humor, but you do have a fever. I think we better go see the doctor just in case."

"But what about Matty?" Salome frowned, managing to sit up.

"I'll get on Skype for a few minutes and tell him, honey. You just get dressed," Alex kissed the top of her head, before rising and walking into the computer room. She fluffed her hair nervously, pulling up her contact list and calling Matt.

Matt sat at his computer, waiting for her to call. A grin swept over his face when he saw her name, and he answered quickly.

"Hello, sweetie," Alex said with a flirty smile, making Matt laugh lightly.

"Morning for you, Kingston," he greeted her in the way that he always did, something he came up with considering it was morning for her but late afternoon for him. He looked around as if trying to see past her shoulders, knowing he couldn't see any more than the webcam allowed. "Where's the princess?" he asked.

"Actually, she won't be able to talk to you this morning," she began, Matt's smile immediately deteriorating. "She's sick."

"Sick?!" Matt's eyes widened, his worry showing on every inch of his face. "Is she okay? What does she have? Are you taking her to the hospital?"

Alex chuckled slightly. "Calm down, she's sick, not dying! She just has a fever and says she feels icky. But yes, I'm taking her the doctor momentarily."

"Alright... keep me updated. Tell her Matty loves her and hopes she feels better soon," he said, and Alex's breath hitched. He loves her daughter. He_ loves _her. Warmth filled her body and she nodded with a great, big smile plastered onto her face.

"I will," she said tearfully. "Goodbye, Matt."

"Until the next time, Alex," he smiled at her, before ending the Skype call. He sat back in his chair, sighing and thinking about how much he loved seeing her beautiful face. He missed her, so much. He bit his lip, wondering what to do with his free time now that his Skype conversation had been cut short. All he could think of was Alex, and so he did what any man with a crush on an actress does: he Googled her.

Curiosity led him into reading about her trainwreck relationship with Ralph. He knew he shouldn't care; their relationship ended fifteen years ago and she was well over it by now, but he grew furious every line he read. He knew Alex had been through a lot, but she never spoke of it. His heart broke for her, and he could not understand Ralph at all. He had the most beautiful woman in the world and he treated her like scum. He couldn't help but notice, however, the similarity between Ralph's relationship with Francesca and his crush on Alex. Two co-stars with nearly a twenty year age difference, he had a girlfriend but fancied her. Matt began to feel guilty. _It's not like I'm cheating on Daisy. I'm not like him. I'm NOTHING like him_, he told himself, but an aching grew in his heart. He exited out of the computer, no longer wanting to hear stories from the internet. He and Alex were friends, and he believed the time had come for him to ask her himself, and he had the perfect opportunity to do that when he flew to LA that weekend for an interview with Craig Ferguson.

A knock came on Alex's door, and she frowned. She had many friends in LA, but they often called before coming. She removed her cleaning apron and made-do with her messy bun before opening the door. "MATT!" she squealed loudly upon seeing his face, and he held his arms out wide and grinned at her.

"Surprise!" he said with glee, clasping his hands together and scanning her body quickly.

She covered her face and looked down, embarrassed to have him see her like this. "Why did you fly out to LA?! I wasn't expecting you, I look terrible, I-"

"Oh, come off it Kingston," he plucked her hands from her face and wrapped his arms around her firmly, and she was only now noticing the package he held in his hands as she felt it on her back. "You look fine," he assured her, smiling down at her pretty face.

She rolled her eyes then grabbed the package. "What's this then?" she asked, shaking it.

"Its a present! For you and Salome!" he grinned excitedly. "Where is she, anyway?"

"It's Friday. She's in school," Alex chuckled at him, closing the door and looping her arm with his, leading him into the living room.

"Right, school. She goes to school. Right," he noted, sitting down on the couch beside Alex. He watched with amusement as she removed the top from the rectangular box and lifted a small shirt from it.

Alex gasped and began to laugh as she saw his face on a Doctor Who shirt. "Oh my goodness, Matt, really?!" she laughed wildly. "We haven't even gotten these in America, yet! Believe me, Salome makes me check every week!"

"And that is why I love your daughter," he laughed with her.

Alex set the shirt down before looking down and seeing another, larger shirt featuring Matt as well. She threw her head back, laughing even harder. "Is this..." she broke her sentence with laughter, "I'm assuming...that this...is for me!?"

"You are correct, Kingston. Now you can see my face as often as you like. I'm sure you'll enjoy that," he winked at her.

"Oh, you cheeky bastard!" she smacked him on the arm and continued to laugh. "You still never told me what you're doing in LA!"

"I'm doing an interview with Craig Ferguson," he replied, scratching the back of his head and beginning to look around her home. It was very clean, cozy, and smelled like her.

"You flew all the way to LA for an INTERVIEW?" she raised her eyebrows, not buying that at all.

He looked back at her with a smirk. Really, he only agreed to do it because he missed her so much but he wouldn't dare admit it. "I like Craig Ferguson. Craig Ferguson is cool," he defended. "Besides, weekend off in LA...couldn't resist!"

She rolled her eyes at him, not pressing him any further. "I was about to start on dinner. Salome comes home from school shortly. Oh, she's going to be so happy to see you! She was so upset about missing out on Skype conversations this week, and when you cancelled the one this morning she was so bummed! I'm guessing this little surprise trip was the real reason you cancelled it though?"

"Yeah, sorry about feeding you some rubbish about going to Daisy's parents for the weekend and she was being pushy about us leaving really early," he managed a small chuckle.

"Oh, no, it wasn't rubbish at all. I didn't doubt that Daisy being a brat," she gasped and put her hand over her mouth, her eyes widening as she saw Matt's shocked expression.. "I'm sorry, I mean...I didn't mean to, I..."

Matt began to laugh again, and she relaxed. "It's okay," he assured her, licking his lips and rising to his feet. "Let's get started on that dinner!"

"This looks amazing!" Alex cried as she set the pasta on the table Matt had just helped her set. She looked up at him, grinning brightly. "You're wonderful at this. Would love to see what you can do when you pick out your own ingredients."

"Well, I did take a culinary class or two," he shrugged, setting the bread sticks and salad on the table as well. He sighed, checking the time on his phone. "Poppet should be home any minute," he said as Alex removed her apron and oven mits. Matt almost frowned, having adored how cute she looked in them. However, after their kitchen banter and playful cooking he couldn't possibly remove the smile on his silly face.

"Yes, she should," Alex nodded, before hearing the sound of the school bus. "Right on time!"

Salome walked lifelessly into her home, kicking her shoes off and pouting from a long day of school. "How was school, honey?" she heard her mom call from the kitchen.

"Terrible!" Salome replied, causing Matt and Alex to raise their eyebrows. She normally loved school. "I missed every day except today because I was sick, so now I literally have so much homework to do!" she groaned and set her bag on the couch.

"Well, I'm sure we can help you with your homework, Salome," her mother said, flashing a devilish grin at Matt and just waiting.

Salome froze. "We?" she then ran into the kitchen, screaming louder than ever when she saw Matt's beaming face. "MATTY!" she cried, jumping into his arms.

"Oh, princess, I've missed you!" he returned her affection by spinning her around, setting her down and staring into her sparkling eyes.

"What are you doing here?! Mom didn't tell me you were coming! How long are you staying?!" she was so excited that her words were coming out like vomit.

Matt laughed at her. "I'm here on personal business. Your mom didn't even know I was coming; it was a surprise! I'll be here until Monday."

"Yay! I don't go back to daddy's til Monday!" she squealed, jumping up and down and clapping her hands. "Best surprise ever!"

"Alright, I know you're excited but let's eat before this dinner get's cold!" Alex suggested, and Matt pulled her chair for her. She blushed madly, their eyes catching in a way that made Salome grin wider than ever. He pulled a chair for Salome, too, which made her grin widen if that was even possible. They sat and ate and talked. Matt caught up with Salome's past couple of weeks, since he hadn't talked to her throughout them. He talked to her like she was an adult; like he was thoroughly interested in everything she was saying and it made Alex's heart simply melt.

"So where are you staying?" Salome asked, batting her eyelashes.

"In a hotel more than likely," Matt replied, taking a big bite of pasta.

"Why don't you stay with us, Matty?!" Salome gasped and bounced in her chair. Alex and Matt just glanced at one another, their lips parting slightly. "You don't have to pay for a hotel! You can just sleep here! We have an extra bedroom! Can he, mommy, please?!" she looked over at her mom with pleading eyes.

"I..." Alex didn't even know what to say. She looked at Salome, then at Matt, then returned her attention to Salome once more.

"I wouldn't want to impose," Matt said directly to Alex, before taking Salome's hand. "That's really sweet, Salome, but.."

"You wouldn't impose," Alex assured him, her legs shaking nervously under the table. Having Matt for a visit was one thing, but having him sleep over at her house was just too...domestic, and with her exceedingly guilty pleasure of fancying him, she wasn't sure she could handle that sort of tension. It was completely improper. However, Salome did have a point. Why stay in a hotel when you have a very close friend (emphasis on friend) that lives where you are staying?

"Well then, I'd love to... if you'll have me..." Matt said softly, and she was so oblivious to how nervous he was as well.

"PLEASE!" Salome cried one more time, still holding tightly onto Matt's hand and reaching over for her mother's as well.

"Alright..." Alex finally said, smiling with uncertainty.

"YAYY!" Salome cried, jumping out of her chair to hug her mother. "Thank you mommy, thank you! We're going to have the best weekend EVER!"

Matt beamed, happy to have a little girl adore him so. "As long as you get your homework done," he warned, slipping his hand from hers and pointing his finger at her. She nodded vigorously, the idea of doing her homework no longer bothering her.

Alex sighed. Even if she ever tried to end her friendship with Matt because it became too much for her, she couldn't. She was completely stuck with a daughter that completely adored him.

The three spent their evening on the living room floor, helping Salome with the exceeding amount of homework she had to do, and homework had never been so much fun. All of it seemed so domestic already, and Alex had to fight back tears. Much to her dismay, Matt noticed a couple of times, and it only reminded him of his planned inquiry. He wasn't stupid; he knew that this had to be the closest to having a family that she had felt in a long time, and that must have made her feel so whole yet so empty at the same time, haunted by her past.

When the lateness of the hour reached a point where Salome needed rest, Matt tucked her into bed as she so loved. Alex immediately showed him the spare room afterwards, but he protested. "Oi, Kingston, it's not MY bedtime, too. I'm not even tired!" he closed the door to the room and crossed his arms.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Alex laughed at herself, taking his arm and leading him back to the living room. "Would you like to watch the tele, instead?" she asked.

"Actually..." Matt wiped the smile from his face and sat down, gesturing for her to sit next to him. "I was hoping we could talk."

Her heart stopped briefly before beginning to pound like an ape against her chest. "A-about what?" she asked nervously.

"I...I just feel like we're really good friends, you and I. We just..." he held his hands up and clicked his fingers together. "...click, so well, you know? I adore you, Alex, but I really don't know that much about you...your history, everything. You've lived so much life and I've missed it all. So I want you to tell me, Alexandra. I want you to tell me about yourself. Everything I've missed. That way I can feel like a proper friend," he spoke softly.

Her eyes shone with curiosity. Why would he want to know all this? So he could be a 'proper' friend? It seemed odd, and she frankly didn't know why he cared so much. Oh, but it made her nerves jolt and her skin become bumpy and she was so happy that someone DID care, even if it was just in a friend way. However, when someone wanted to know all of this, it was a female friend. This person, however, was a man. A very attractive, young man that was just too perfect and way out of her league. She found it hard to believe that out of all the people in the world, he wanted to know about HER. "Well..." she cleared her throat, sitting Indian-style on the couch and rocking back and forth. She was hesitant, but his eyes were so sincere that it kept her going. So she told him everything. About her parents and her sisters and her journey as an actress. All was light-hearted until she mentioned meeting Ralph. She became stiff, and curled up until she was hugging her knees. She couldn't even look at Matt as she spoke. "It's quite funny how my love for acting brought me to Ralph. The thing I love most brought me the worst thing in my life. I don't blame it on acting, though. I blame it on myself. I was young and stupid and reckless. I was a completely different person then, but the choices I made then affected me for over half my life. I don't know what made me stay after the first lie, or the first girl I caught him with, or...or the first time he hit me,"

"He hit you?!" Matt hadn't meant to interrupt her through this, but the anger that coursed through him was too much. He gripped the couch until his knuckles turned white.

"Yes," she spoke shakenly. "I never told the press about it, but it's not exactly a secret. Shortly after the divorce, it was the gossip all throughout England...but you were so young when it was happening, you couldn't have gotten caught in that mess."

"I'm going to kill him. No man should ever, ever lay his hands on a woman. Damn it, Alex! He shouldn't get away with this! It's...it's..."

"Shh," Alex scooted closer to him, wrapping her arms around him and leaning on his chest. "If you're going to get upset, I'm going to have to stop..." she was surprised to hear how hard his heart was hammering in his chest. She began to pull away from his embrace, but he enveloped her in his arms and laid back on the couch. Now HER heart was hammering in her chest. Again.

"I'm sorry... I just care about you...alot," _more than you know, Alex_, he thought to himself, before continuing, "And it pains me that anyone would cheat on you, much less hurt you.."

She smiled at his deep compassion towards her, fluttering her eyes shut. Her smile disappeared when she continued, "Everyone thinks it's the divorce that left me shattered, but honestly I had gone into a dark place before then. He would tell me such awful things. How I was worthless and I would be nothing without him, he even told me to kill myself, and I almost did..." she paused, taking in a choppy breath. "I'm so glad I was able to get the part of Moll Flanders when I did. I really channeled everything into Moll, and it was a release. Not to mention it really kick-started my career. After that, I moved on to ER, which was such a big, big thing in my life. I moved here, met...Florian...who was, at the time, great. I was able to conceive a child like I had wanted more than anything for a long time, and as you know she's the best thing to ever happen to me. Of course, I wanted to give her brothers and sisters...but Florian didn't because I wasn't even a proper mother to Salome," his grip on her tightened and he wanted to say something, but he refrained. "I guess he was right, because I was ALWAYS filming and he had to be the one to take care of her. I missed so many important things in her life," Alex began to cry softly.

Matt held her tighter and pressed soft kisses into her curls, finally telling her what he had been dying to. "You are an excellent mother, Alex. Don't let anyone make you think otherwise."

"Thank you, Matt..." she looked at him, smiling through her tears. She took a deep sigh before returning to her story, "He accused me wanting kids but wanting HIM to take care of them; which wasn't true at all, because I wanted more than ANYTHING to be a part of Salome's life. That's where the arguing really started. I hadn't been in love with him for a long time when I woke up to those divorce papers, but God it broke me... I wanted to have a family. A WHOLE family. My family. I wanted Salome to have a happy mummy and daddy." her tears fell and stained his sky blue shirt, but he carelessly still held her, brushing against her back with his fingertips. "Sometimes, though, when I'm with you and Salome... you make me feel like that. I don't mean it in a romantic way and I hope this doesn't make you feel awkward but you just make me feel sort of whole again. I think she feels that way too...she loves you so much."

"And I love her," he whispered with a smile. "Of course it's not awkward...I love that I'm able to do that for you. You deserve to be happy."

"Matt?" she asked, enjoying the comfort of his strong arms that she didn't have the heart to let go even after she finished her story.

"Yes?"

"Thank you. For everything."

He smiled, closing his eyes. His anger with Ralph and Florian seemed to have settled, and now he was just happy that she was letting him hold her. "You're welcome," he replied. They just lay there, not saying anything. She listened to his heartbeat until she fell asleep, and he didn't stay awake long enough to notice she had dozed off. Alex lay on top of Matt, nestled comfortably into his arms as they slept on the couch.

Salome was normally waken in person by her mother, but this time it was her mother's screeching alarm that woke her. She groggily stepped into the room, turning off the alarm. She was confused to not see her mom, and began looking around the house. She stopped, her eyes widening when she saw her mother and Matt fast asleep together on the couch. She gasped, unsure whether to be shocked or happy or both. She tip-toed over to them, poking her mom. Alex groaned, snuggling closer into Matt's neck and ignoring the poke.

"MOM!" Salome yelled, then stepped a few feet back. Lucky for her, because her mother awoke with a start and began to flail which would have surely ended in Salome being caught in the fire of her arms swinging about. She squealed when she came to her senses and realized what was happening. "Oh no..oh my... AH!" she rose to her feet as Matt began to wake as well, a smug smile tugging on his face.

"Good morning, Kingston," he said groggily. "What's with the red face?"

"I...uh...Salome...um...honey..."

"It's okay, you don't have to explain," Salome said with a smile as she skipped away. Alex's eyes widened. Could her daughter possibly know that she liked Matt? "Can we get breakfast, mom? I want pancakes.

"Pancakes sound nice," Alex heard Matt say and she jumped once more as she became aware once more of his presence. She looked back at him with eyes so fierce that he cringed and stepped a few feet away from her.

"What's wrong?" he asked softly so that Salome wouldn't hear.

"We fell asleep. On the couch. Together. My daughter walked in on us! God knows how that looked!" she whispered harshly, angrily crossing her arms.

He laughed, scratching the back of his head. "It's okay," he whispered, stepping closer to her and bopping her on the nose. "Nothing happened we just accidentally fell asleep on a relatively small couch and ended up sort of um..." he began to blush. "...cuddling."

"You're right, it was completely an accident..." Alex wasn't facing him so she was unable to see him blushing, but she was just as red as he was. "I'm sorry, Matt. I really didn't mean to."

"It's okay," he assured her. Really, it was. His only complaint was that he was asleep for the duration of said cuddling. "It's really not a big deal. Now, pancakes?"

She finally cracked a smile, relieved that he wasn't freaked out by the slightly crossed boundary. "Pancakes," she agreed.

After breakfast, the two spent most of the day helping Salome with homework, again. She really wasn't kidding when she said she had a lot. Towards the afternoon, however, Matt began to dress for Craig Ferguson. "Are you and Salome going to be watching?" he asked.

"It's past my bedtime," Salome frowned.

"It's okay, dear, I'll record it for you," she told her daughter in comfort.

"Okay, because I really wanna watch it," the little girl said with a small smile.

"Well you be good, princess," he hugged her, then rose to his feet and stared Alex in the eyes. "See you when I get home, honey," he teased her with a wink.

She blushed immediately and her mouth twisted. Oh she hated him.

Oh she adored him.

She regained her ground, quickly retorting with, "Don't stay out past your bedtime, dear. Don't want you to accidentally fall asleep in places you shouldn't."

He grinned, and if it weren't for the fact Salome was standing there he would have come up with an extremely sexual reply to that. Instead, he opted with, "Yes, of course," before leaving the residence.

It was nearly 2 am before Matt returned to Alex's, and when he did she stood in the living room, crossing her arms. "You're past your bedtime, Mr. Smith,"

He grinned, stepping closer to her and batting his eyelashes. "What are you going to do, spank me?" he whispered softly, flipping his hair out of his eyes.

"Mmh, I might," she purred, giving him a wink before turning off the tele.

He watched as her hips swayed as she walked, biting his lip as she bent over and oh shit he was aroused. He turned away from her, scratching his head nervously. "Oh, um, I best be getting to bed then..." he walked with lanky, nervous strides like the awkward baby giraffe he was.

Alex cocked her brow, not expecting him to walk away so early. "Not so fast, Mr. Smith," she purred, and damn it her sultry voice just turned him on even more.

Matt paused in his steps, poising his arms outwards and slightly in front of him. He looked over his shoulder at her, careful to not let her see the bulge in his pants. He cleared his throat nervously. "Yes, Miss Kingston?"

"I spilled all of my history out to you last night," she began with a smile, and he already knew where this was going. "I think it's your turn, now."

He gulped,looking her up and down. She was in her nightgown, her curls tugged back into a horse tail spiraling down between her shoulder blades. He liked her like this, he thought, but he knew he needed to push his attraction out of his mind or he wouldn't be able to speak to her without attacking her like a wild animal. "Alright," he agreed, backing up in a Michael Jackson moonwalk that made her giggle. Thankfully she didn't think much of it. He managed to step around the couch, poising his legs so that he was hidden. He patted the seat beside him, and she gracefully took it.

"We have to remember to actually go to our rooms this time," she warned, pointing a finger at him.

"Alright, we'll play a game. Whoever starts dozing off first loses, deal?" he proposed. "And loser has to do whatever the winner wants."

"And what would you want if you win?" Alex asked, her voice thick with curiosity.

"I'm still thinking on it. Deal?" he lied, however, because he knew exactly what he wanted.

"I'm not sure I like this..." she chuckled, extending her hand for him to shake. "But deal."

He grinned wide, before beginning his life story. Of course, it didn't take as long as hers did, and wasn't nearly as dramatic. In fact, it seemed quite pleasant. She smiled as he told her in specific detail, using his arms to tell his tales. "And then, I got the part as the Doctor and here I am," he finished, holding his arms out like 'ta da!'

Alex hugged her knees to her chin, raising her brows at him. "You didn't mention Daisy at all," she watched has his smile dropped from his face. She knew they were okay; after all, he mentioned Daisy on Craig Ferguson. Why didn't he include her in his life story, then?

"I know you don't like her very much," he responded, looking away from her.

"That's not fair, though. I didn't leave anything out when I spoke to you," she said light-heartedly, but for some reason it hurt him to hear her say that. "So, how long have you been together, anyway?" she continued.

"About a year and a half," he answered, much to her surprise.

"And you're already living with her?"

"Well, yeah..." Matt said, suddenly feeling very awkward talking about his girlfriend to the woman he was severely crushing on. "I guess it sort of moved fast," he told her, mentally recalling the reasons it had. Reasons he never told _anyone. _He sighed deeply, not wanting to tell her this but she had been so open with him. "I got her pregnant," he finally said.

Alex's eyes widened and she moved back a bit, her mouth hanging ajar.

"I met her at this event...thing..we hit it off really quickly and I wasn't exactly careful during the first part of our relatonship. It wasn't even a month after we met when she came to me and told me she was pregnant," he couldn't even look at Alex's face, which stared at him in shock. She had googled Matt before and never found anything like this.

"What happened?" Alex asked shakily.

"We kept it a secret. Moved in together after three months. Then she miscarried..." his eyes welled with tears.

Alex's heart broke for him and even for Daisy. She had gone through so many miscarriages and struggled to even be able to conceive Salome. Safe to say, miscarriage stories were her soft spot. She extended her hand out to his arm, rubbing it softly. "I'm so sorry," she breathed.

"It's okay...I guess everything started changing after that. I began to change. Daisy, however, seemed to carry on just fine... She piled on modeling gig after modeling gig, and I didn't see her much for the next few months so it was like we weren't even living together. Even then, only a few people knew we were."

"Do you still want kids?" Alex couldn't help but ask, and he finally looked at her. "One day, I mean."

"Yes, one day..." then it dawned on him: he really didn't want to have kids with Daisy. He sighed, rising from the couch and running his fingers through his hair. "Well, I'm going to go to bed now. Goodnight, Alex," and with that, he left into the spare bedroom.

It was another hour before Alex could go to bed, still shocked from what he just told her and feeling a bit guilty that she forced it out of him.

Sunday went much different than Friday and Saturday. Salome finished her homework early that morning, so Matt and Alex took her out to ice cream as a treat. Alex and Matt didn't speak much, and it seemed almost awkward now. The realization for both of them was setting in that Matt had Daisy and how they were acting was inappropriate period, regardless of their age difference.

Matt left Monday morning before Florian came to pick up Salome, thanking Alex for kindly letting him stay there. When he arrived in England several hours later, he picked up flowers for Daisy and took her out. They talked like they hadn't in a long time, and he put more effort in than he had since the beginning of their relationship. At times, he felt happy with her. She had her moments, after all. But sometimes he just felt so empty laying next to her.


	10. Reunion

**Updating this quickly mainly because this is not the best chapter. It's really short compared to the last one, and in all honesty this is just sort of a "filler" chapter for bigger things to come.**

* * *

"Are we okay?"

The question came from such random origin that Matt Smith could only look up at his girlfriend in confusion. They were in a public diner, enjoying a meal together. He had noticed that Daisy was unusually quiet, but no more quiet than he.

"What do you mean?" he simply asked, flipping his hair from his eyes and leaning in closer to her.

Daisy looked away, playing with her fingers and smiling in an odd way. "You've bought me a plethora of flowers in the last month. You only buy me flowers after a fight or you do something wrong. But we haven't fought lately at all and you obviously haven't done anything wrong, otherwise we_ would _be fighting," she broke her sentence to chuckle lightly, and he raised his eyebrows and tilted his head in agreement. "So tell me, Matt, why do I have a house full of flowers?"

His legs fidgeted underneath the table, and he looked down at her hands, taking them into his own. He rubbed her skin with his thumbs, his face expressionless. "Yeah, we're okay," he finally said after a long moment.

"Are you...guilty...about something?" she asked, leaning closer so that her face would be in his view.

"No, of course not," he lied, Alex flashing through his mind in a lightning bolt and rumbling through his thoughts like thunder.

Daisy heaved a sigh, seemingly unsatisfied with his answer but she said no more, affectionately caressing his hands and occasionally leaning in for a kiss.

All Matt could think of, however, was Alex returning for Demon's Run. He hadn't spoken to her since leaving her home a few weeks ago, other than briefly seeing her during his Skype chats with Salome. During the Christmas holidays, however, he didn't even speak to Salome.

The next day, he couldn't help but look for her among the bustling crowd of cast and crew. From what he understood from the script, however, they would be shooting her scenes last and Matt wouldn't see her much. He seemed more on edge as he filmed that week, which played along well with the Doctor's anger in this episode.

He barely recognized her with her curls pinned completely in an updo, donning a blue Victorian-style dress. He lingered behind the cameras on set, watching her as she filmed a scene with Arthur. The moment she caught him staring at her, she froze mid-line. Cameras cut and they filmed the scene again. He managed to smile as she spoke about the Doctor taking River to 19th century London and getting Stevie Wonder to sing under a bridge for her. He wondered if Steven would ever have them film more romantic scenes like that in the future, but then again it wasn't really his style. Matt wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. His grin widened when Alex made the remark about the two Doctors, naughty images flourishing his mind. If it wasn't already insinuated after the 'I'm quite the screamer,' comment in the Impossible Astronaut, then it was apparant that the Doctor shagged River. A lot. The thought of making love to Alex sent a surge of nerves through his abdomen, and he had to take his eyes off her like she was so desperately trying to take her eyes off of him. Upon realizing he was causing a distraction, he pocketed his hands and strolled outside the set.

* * *

"Ah! I'm going to trip over it!" Alex laughed as she tried carrying the train of dress while exiting through the door. Arthur laughed behind her, reaching his arms out so that he steadied her. "Careful!" he cried, catching Matt's almost jealous gaze. Alex found Matt's face once more, and forgot to breathe for several seconds. "Hello, Matt," she said through a sharp intake of breath, her smile wavering awkwardly.

"Kingston," he replied, the corners of his mouth stretching into a half-smile.

"What's wrong, mate?" Arthur asked Matt with concern.

"Nothing," he replied, but Alex knew he was lying.

Arthur, seeming to sense something, bobbed his head and told them, "Catch you later, then," and walked away.

"How was your Christmas?" Alex asked politely, playing with the details on her dress and looking down.

"Great. Yours?" he replied, studying her with a blank expression.

"I spent it here, actually," she told him, and he raised his eyebrows in surprise. She had been in England this whole time and never told him? "Salome doesn't return to school until next week, and I finish filming next week so we just made a trip up here...Florian came, too," she spoke that last bit softly and a bit shaken.

"Oh," was all he could say, imagining Alex spending Christmas with her ex-husband and realizing that her Christmas was probably not all that great, considering she avoided the question. "So when do I get to see my poppet?" he asked with a hopeful smile.

"Well, I'm afraid not anytime soon. I won't be back until we film the final scene next week and until then I'll be in Germany with Salome."

"And Florian?" he asked, and she reluctantly sighed and nodded.

"Are you okay with that?" he asked worriedly.

Before she had a chance to answer, Matt was being summoned by the director. "You better go," she said softly.

He rolled his eyes. "Alright. See you next week... and Alex?"

"Yes?"

"If you need me...you know, as a friend... don't hesitate to call," he told her. She nodded with a wide smile and he left to go shoot his scenes.

Alex shook her head, supressing the feelings he always brought her and starting towards her trailer.

* * *

Nerves and excitement were in the air. This was the day everyone found out who River Song was. False scripts had been given to Rory, Matt, and Karen, so that only Alex and Moffat knew what was going on. Salome bounced on her heels behind Matt, who was now finished with his part of filming.

Moffat could not hide the grin on his face. He wanted to film this. The big reveal. Hopefully, the take would be good enough to use because he so desperately wanted to capture their actual reactions. Not even the crew knew, so this would be an epic moment for everyone.

Arthur and Karen never looked more confused in their life as Alex began to talk about the only water in the forest. Everyone's hearts were pounding. Salome squeezed Matt's hand ridiculously tight in anticipation, before hearing her mother say.

"It's me. I'm Melody. I'm your daughter."

Shock rippled throughout the room as the cameras cut. "WHAT?!" several people screamed all at once.

"WHAT?!" Karen joined them, Arthur close behind her.

"River Song... is our daughter..." Karen let that sink in.

"KINGSTOOOOONN!" Matt rumbled from behind her, shaking his hands in the air and fumbling around like a mad man. "YOU ARE MELODY POND! YOU'RE A POND!" he cried, grabbing his hair and pulling at it. "How did you keep that in so long!" he was laughing and smiling with a wide, open mouth, looking back and forth between Kaz and Arthur. He then ran over to Moffat, grasping his cheeks and placing a smacking kiss on his forhead. "Steven Moffat, you are brilliant, you!"

Alex laughed wildly at Matt's antics while Karen and Arthur still stared into oblivion. She turned to her daughter, who was staring up at her with wide eyes. "So you're Amy and Rory's daughter... does this mean I can call you grandma and grampa now?" she asked Karen and Arthur, who finally laughed.

"I guess so, dear. C'mon, then!" Arthur said, bending down and holding out his arms.

"Yay! Grampa!" Salome cried, jumping into his arms. "Since you're my grand parents now I think you should take me out for ice cream!"

"Salome!" Alex laughed, shaking her head.

"That sounds like a great idea! Oi, Raggedy Man! If yer done making a fool out o' yerself we're taking our grandaughter out to ice cream!" she called over to Matt, who spun around on his heel and walked to the group. "Ice cream sounds nice!"

"Wait one moment!" Steven said, walking up to them. "Got to get a few more takes and THEN you lot can go get ice cream."

Salome jumped from Arthur's arms, pulling Matt along to the sidelines once more as the others prepared to film a few more takes.

Everything felt normal again after that. Matt and Alex returned to their flirty selves and all the cast had great laughs and fun together. Salome enjoyed Matt's company too much, and clung to him tightly before she left for the airport.

"I don't want to go, Matty!" Salome pouted.

"I know, princess, but you have to go back to school. I'll Skype you every day, okay?" he told her, holding her back with a gentle but firm grip.

"Pinky promise?" she pulled back, holding out her tiny pinky.

He smiled, wrapping it in his before kissing her hand. "Promise," he told her, finally letting her go.

Alex rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Until the next time, Doctor," she teased.

"Can't wait, Pond," he replied, reaching in and hugging her tenderly. He held her a bit longer than he should have, but she (nor Salome) seemed to mind. His nose brushed against her curls as her sweet scent filled him like a breath of fresh air. There was something so warm and complete in her embrace that he found it to be more difficult each time he had to let go. One day he wasn't so sure he'd be able to.


	11. Penny In The Air

It wasn't the type of call Alex would expect from Matt. It was late in the afternoon for her, but very late night for him. Their calls were always early morning via Skype, but this was on her personal phone and more importantly it was for her, not Salome.

"Hello? Matt?" she answered in a high-pitched voice, tugging nervously on one of her curls.

"Hey," he responded from the other line a whole country away. He lay on the bed of his trailer, having not left the set yet.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" she asked after a long silence.

"I noticed you released the news about you and Florian," he cleared his throat, remembering the conversation he over-heard earlier. "About time," he added.

"Ah, yes," Alex said, the smile that hearing his voice had brought her now fading. "I made a press statement when I was there a couple of weeks ago."

"Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine. It's been almost two years since he asked for the divorce...we agreed it was about time we said something to the media about it," she sighed. Most celebrities didn't have to inform the media when they split, but Alex didn't recieve much attention from the media in America.

_Almost two years_, Matt held that thought. He remembered that one morning he had found her so upset about it and it had only been a year. "We've known each other for almost a year now," he stated as he realized this.

This dawned on Alex as well and she smiled, happy to have a change in subject. "Yes, we have. Time flies. I remember the day I met you and I had to fall on top of you several times that very same day!" she laughed as she thought about it.

"You liked it," he shot with a playful grin.

"Oh, you-" her mouth wriggled from an odd combination of amusement and frustration. "Come off it, Matt!"

"I'm already off of you, you're just imagining it now," he teased her, hearing a long silence. "You're blushing now, aren't you, Kingston?"

Oh, she was blushing like scarlet and he wasn't even there to see it! "I hate you," she replied with her tongue in her cheek.

"No you don't," he couldn't stop grinning.

"Besides, that's completely inappropriate!" she sat on her bed, biting on the inside of her cheek.

"Says the queen of inappropriate," he scoffed at her jokingly. "If I had a nickel for every sexual innuendo you made then I'd be richer than J.K. Rowling!"

"You like it," she turned it around on him with a smug smirk.

His grin widened. She was good. And a hundred percent "Correct," he told her, nibbling on his lip.

She smiled, rolling her eyes at him. "Shouldn't you be getting to sleep?"

"I haven't left set yet, honestly," he told her, remembering he was in his trailer still.

"What?! Why?"

He didn't want to answer that he was avoiding Daisy, but he didn't like lying to Alex like he lied to Daisy. It was bad enough he lied about how he felt about her.

"Matt? Is everything okay?" she asked after his long silence, frowning.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I better get home. You have a lovely night, Alex. Talk to you in the morning," he said almost lovingly.

"You too...goodnight," she breathed, before hearing him end the line. Despite being worried about him, she couldn't help but smile at how lovely it had been to speak to him. He made her laugh and blush like she was young again. The more she was around him the less conscious she became of her age. They had become fairly close now in this past year, and though her feelings for him terrified and confused her, she adored having a friendship with him. He was really unlike any man she ever met. She sighed, realizing she promised Salome she would pick her up from school today and pushing away her hopeless feelings for Matt.

The room of Alex's home filled with Salome's whining as she begged her mom to allow her to go to England with her for the filming of Lets Kill Hitler.

Matt chuckled lightly. "You know you have to be in school! I'm sorry, princess, but I'm with your mum on this one."

"But it's my birthday this month! It's just for a week! I want to see you, Matty!" she pouted, crossing her arms.

"You already missed enough days when you were sick. You don't need to miss any more," Alex told her sternly.

"Okay," Salome pouted. "Mom, can you give me a moment alone with Matty?"

Alex raised her eyebrows at the odd request, but assuming it had to deal with her birthday she rose from the chair and exited the house. "Be back in five minutes, then," she said with no questions asked.

"Well if I can't come then you need to at least spend a lot of time with my mom!" Salome informed Matt when Alex was out of earshot.

"What?" Matt raised his eyebrows and grinned.

"You need to put the moves on her, Matty!"

"SALOME! Where did you hear that?!" Matty gasped, trying hard not to laugh at her.

"At school," she responded. "I'm almost ten, not five, ya know!"

"Yes, yes, I know-but still! There will be no move-making on your mum!" he pointed a finger at the webcam and shook it.

Salome sighed and rolled her eyes. "Well, this is her birthday month, too. Her's is the 11th... just a couple of weeks before mine. So you should at least do something nice for her."

"What did you have in mind?" he sat back, folding his fingers across his stomach.

"A kiss," Salome's eyes brightened and Matt laughed.

"I'm going to kiss her in the episode. Does that count?" he asked, his stomach fluttering just thinking about kissing Alex again.

"No!" she crossed her arms and winced her eyes menacingly cute at him. He just smiled.

"No can do, poppet. I've got a girlfriend, remember?"

Salome leaned her cheek in her hand, snarling at the mention of Daisy. "Mommy would make a better girlfriend," she mumbled under her breath.

Matt honestly couldn't tell her that he disagreed. "I'll get her something nice for her birthday. Be expecting something from me for yours, too!"

She grinned as he mentioned that. "Yay! What are you getting me?!"

"Spoilers," he winked at her, before hearing her mom come through the door.

"Have a nice chat?" Alex asked, sitting beside Salome.

Salome and Matt just looked at one another, then Salome looked at her mom. "Spoilers," she said in a cute voice, and they all just laughed.

"See you in a couple of days, Kingston," Matt told her.

"Until then," Alex replied, waving before ending the Skype call.

Alex and Matt sat next to one another at the read-through of one of the funniest scripts ever written. The gang would look at one another and laugh as they individually read their lines. The reveal of Mels was shocking, and the actress playing her was lovely.

Matt's face grew pale as he read over the part about River wriggling her bum over the Doctor, and he looked at Alex with a bit of concern. She couldn't even say the words between her laughter.

"Steven, I hate you!" Alex continued to laugh at the lines and silly antics Moffat had given her.

"No you don't," Steven replied with a grin.

"This is a very different side of River...I like it," Matt winked at her.

"Oh I bet you do," Alex purred back with a chuckle, nudging him with her side. "HEL-LO, sweetie!"

* * *

As Matt suspected, filming the scene after Mels regenerated into River was interesting. He watched the director explain to River how to approach Matt and tease him with her body. Oh, he hated Steven too. Okay, no he didn't. But still, he was nervous. He was thankful that the cameras were directed at Alex for a long while because the facial expression he was making was absolutely absurd. It only became worse when Alex ran into him, leaning so close into his body that it made is heart pound. "Watch out, that bow tie!" she said, before turning around and practically dancing on his lap. He was blushing terribly, his arms flailing and his mouth gaping. She moved away before she could feel him poke her, and as soon as she did move, his hands crossed over his crotch to conceal the problem she just created. They obviously liked that bit, because they kept it and edited into the final take. They shot the scene several times, but they kept the earlier takes due to Matt's priceless facial expressions in the first few. He could not be more relieved when he was excused from filming, and so he left to the bathroom to fix a certain problem.

The next day, Alex filmed even more strikingly awesome scenes for River. Matt and Karen could not stop laughing as she looked the Nazi's straight in the eye and said, "Oh, I was just on my way to a gay gypsy bar mitzvah for the disabled when I thought, gee, the third reich's a bit rubbish...I think I'll kill the fuhrer!" Alex, of coursed, messed the line up several times before getting it correct, looking over at Matt and Karen who were practically dying with laughter.

Between takes, Alex and Matt flirted shamelessly and they made fun of Karen about swooning over the 'fit Nazi.'

"Well, he_ is_ quite handsome," Alex remarked with a devilish smirk.

Matt crossed his arms and pouted in jealousy. "You never call me handsome," he mumbled.

"Awwww!" Alex drug out with a laugh, pulling him in and hugging him tightly. "You are very handsome, Matthew..." she told him, and he beamed. "Even with that ridiculous chin!"

His smile faded and he gasped. "How dare you!" he cried, covering his chin. "I'm apalled!"

"I'm only kidding," Alex told him, taking his wrists into her hands and pulling them down from his face. "I think it makes you quite cute," she stroked his chin fondly, and he smiled like a school boy as she did so, enjoying her touch.

* * *

Thursday was the most nerve-wracking day for both Matt and Alex. Though they were much less nervous than their first on-screen kiss, it was still shaking them a little bit. Matt lay on the stairs with Alex laying over him. He could hardly stay still as she drew nearer, softly saying "Hello, sweetie," before placing her lips over his. The corners of his mouth tugged into a smile and his tongue lapped over her luscious lips. She welcomed him in, kissing him deeply and slowly. When they yelled cut, she pulled back, smiling nervously at him.

He just grinned in return. "You okay?" he asked.

"Yes. Fine. I'm fine, yes," she laughed and blushed.

"You seem a bit nervous," he sat up a bit so that he could look closer into her beautiful eyes.

"Well I haven't kissed a man since I last kissed you," she admitted, biting her lip.

"Neither have I," he replied with a grin and she smacked him hard on the arm.

He had to lay back down when they filmed the scene again, but he didn't mind. He was getting paid to kiss someone he had a crush on, and quite frankly he could do it all day. She could kiss better than anyone really, and it sent sparks flying around him. He could almost _feel_ the regeneration energy that they would digitally add in later, that's how much passion he felt when he kissed her. She smelled like gardenia flowers and her lips were so soft. It was nice being able to release his feelings for her through his acting, seeing as he had to refrain from just kissing her and confessing how he felt multiple occasions. This was getting dangerous.

For her, all guilty feelings wiped away. He obviously didn't mind kissing her and she couldn't help but think he enjoyed it. God, did she love kissing him, too. He was passionate and tender and brought something new to kissing that she had never felt before on or off-screen. It thrilled her, and it was a release for her as well to be able to kiss him. It was just acting, she didn't need to feel guilty. Even if she did have a crush on him. Matt was a great kisser, so what if she enjoyed it?

Alex wrapped herself in a white robe after filming the kiss, walking over to Matt who had shed most of his costume. "I like the dressed-down look," she noted, staring at his all-white ensemble and biting her lip. It made him look really fit, and she couldn't help but check him out a bit.

He grinned, enjoying the attention. "I like the shower robe," he retorted.

She laughed, twirling around in it. "At least I'm warm!"

Then, the camera man for the confidential approached them. "So, Alex, you got to regenerate in this episode!"

"I know!" Alex said to the camera, reaching a hand in her hair and rustling it in her curls. "I've never been regenerated before."

"It's quite a privelage, isn't it?" Matt asked, arms crossed

"It is quite a privelage, I suppose," Alex agreed. "But I just remembered, all I could think about was when I was giving birth, you're in such..."

"This was my reference as well," Matt interrupted her with a smug smirk, and Alex burst into laughter. He was so ridiculous and she loved it. She pulled herself together, finishing what she was saying with his eyes intently on her and a loving smile on his face. Sometimes, he thought he could just listen to her talk all day.

When the confidential camera man walked away, Matt walked Alex to her trailer. They didn't say anything, but they had ridiculously wide smirks on their red faces.

"Your birthday is tomorrow," Matt noted as she reached the doors. She nodded. "Planning on doing anything?"

"I don't know...turning 48 isn't anything to celebrate," she scoffed with a slight chuckle.

Matt rolled his eyes at her. "You're never too old to have a birthday party. I'll be having birthday parties til I'm 100."

Alex laughed, opening the doors to her trailer and stepping in. "Well maybe I'll invite you all for drinks," she said. "Good night, Matt."

"Later, Kingston," he smiled at her, plans forming in his mind.

* * *

Friday's filming was short. Alex came in to everyone smiling and wishing her a happy birthday, but since Matt's filming was seperate from hers, she didn't see him. She was beginning to think he forgot before she recieved the text, _Hello, birthday girl. Want to meet me at my house in a couple of hours_? She smiled, responding _Yes, _before going home and preparing herself.

She arrived to the Smith residence, opening the door and recieving a massive, "SURPRISE!" from a room full of people. She gasped, her eyes finding Matt who walked up to her and threw confetti over her head before placing a paper tiara on her head. She laughed wildly at his childishness before pulling him into a hug.

"Happy birthday, Alex!" Matt said behind everyone else, hugging her tightly.

"I..I don't know what to say!" Alex cried, waving her hands in front of her face in excitement. Matt whispered in her ear and she looked at him oddly. "Let them eat cake!" she recited the Marie Antoinette quote with a loud chuckle.

"CAKE!" Matt yelled, then Karen and Arthur came from the kitchen with a cake full of candles. Everyone began singing 'happy birthday,' and Alex was blushing madly.

"Make a wish!" Arthur said with a smile.

"Go on, Alex, have a blow at it!"

"Blowing is what I do best, darling," she winked at him, causing his eyes to widen and his brows to raise almost into his hairline.

Alex laughed at his facial expression, blowing out the candles. Matt cut the cake afterwards. He gave Alex the first piece, and the rest was devoured quickly by everyone else

Matt had bought a few drinks for the occasion, and played bartender until everyone was satisfied. Alex laughed and talked with several people, recieving presents at one point in the night and thanking everyone over and over.

Noticing Matt by himself on the terrace, Alex joined him "Did you plan this?" she asked, standing close beside him.

"It's nothing," Matt responded, taking a sip of his drink. "Happy birthday, Alex."

"Why are you so nice to me?" Alex inquired with a wide smile as she traced the rim of her own glass with her finger.

"Maybe I like you," he told her softly, his eyes boring into hers in a way that made her pulse quicken.

"I sure hope so, since we're friends!" she laughed. The expression on his face told her that it wasn't what he meant, and she raised her eyebrows. "Oh, Matt, don't be ridiculous. I'm old enough to be your mother!" she said it with a smile, but she was so nervous that her palms became sweaty.

"So I'm not allowed to like you because of your age?" he raised his own brows, leaning into her slightly.

Her mouth hung ajar and she really wasn't sure if he was kidding or teasing her or if he was actually being serious. He couldn't be serious, could he?

He answered her by continuing with, "I always tell you you're beautiful and sexy but it's like you never listen; like you NEVER believe me when I say it."

"You're a flirt," she responded quickly, her heart racing. "You tell Karen and other women that all the time so I don't think much of it."

"And I mean it. But I'm not attracted to Karen like I'm attracted to you."

The shocked expression on her face could not be described in words."I think you've had a bit too much to drink," Alex gulped, her eyes wide and her adrenaline running wild.

"I'm not drunk, Alex. Tipsy, okay, but I'm not drunk. I really am attracted to you. Really."

"What are YOU two out here talking about?!" Karen interrupted and leaned onto Matt's shoulder, grinning drunkenly.

Karen seemed to have broke the tension, and Matt smiled at her, "Just making fun of you," he teased her.

Karen gasped, stepping away from them. "How dare you!" she cried.

"Oh calm down, Kaz, I'm just kidding," Matt pulled Karen into a hug, keeping his arm draped around her shoulders.

"Are you having a good time at your party?" Karen asked Alex, who smiled and nodded.

"Yes, mummy dear, thank you," she replied, hoisting her champagne in the air and smiling.

"IS THAT ALCHOHOL?! You're not allowed to drink! You're grounded!" Karen pointed at her, laughing as she spoke.

"Oh, no, mummy, please don't ground me! Here, you can take it!" she passed the glass to Karen, who downed it with a thick shake of her head. Alex raised her brows, not expecting that at all. "I think you should stop drinking," Alex noted.

"I think you ALL should stop drinking."

The three of them snapped their heads to the door of the terrace, where Daisy stood with crossed arms and a very angry expression on her face.

"Daisy! You're home early!" Matt cried with a shriek, removing his arm from Karen's shoulders and walking torwards her nervously.

"Yeah, I am, and I come home and find out that YOU THREW A FUCKING PARTY!"

"It's Alex's birthday...it's just a small get-together, Daze."

"Yeah, I'm sure it is!" she shot, glaring at Karen but Matt didn't particularly notice.

Matt rolled his eyes. "Just stop. I'll get everyone out and we can talk about this in a minute. Just don't ruin Alex's birthday like this."

Daisy had enough grace to oblige, marching back to their room as Matt told everyone they had to leave.

"I'm sorry..." Alex whimpered, last to exit the door. "I didn't mean to cause a fight."

"No, no it's my fault..." Matt sighed. "I'm sorry she ruined your birthday."

"No... I had a wonderful time..." Alex smiled honestly at him. "Thank you so much."

"You're welcome," he sighed, hearing Daisy crying from his bedroom. "Goodnight, Alex," he remembered Salome's promise and bent down to kiss her cheek, much to her surprise. "Happy birthday...oh and Alex, this is for you," he pulled a small box from his pocket and tossed it to her.

She rubbed her cheek, feeling fuzzy inside yet still guilty at the same time and still confused about what he had said earlier. She caught the box, opening it and gasping. It was a large flower ring that simply screamed her name. "I love it!" she told him with a wide smile. "Goodnight, Matt, thank you."

Matt smiled, pleased that he liked it. He then locked the door, walking slowly down the hall until he reached the bedroom.

"You still want to talk?" he asked, frowning when he saw her face buried in the pillow as she sobbed.

She shook her head. "No. Just no. Just sleep on the couch tonight. Go away."

Matt's heart suddenly felt heavy. "I didn't mean to upset you. I know I should have told you, but it was just a few people and I didn't think you would mind."

She just sobbed harder. If only he knew why she was really crying.

"Goodnight, Daze," he sighed once more, closing the door to their bedroom and beginning to clean up the party mess.

* * *

Alex was too afraid to ask Matt about what he said.. He wasn't far away, and she could easily just text him about it. Something held her back. He had been drinking at the time, but then again people were typically honest when they drank and he seemed so very serious. He sent her an apology about the previous night, and she simply told him it was okay. _I'm more worried about you, to be honest. What happened with you and Daisy?_

_She hasn't spoken to me yet._

_I thought you two were going to have a chat when everyone left?_

_She told me she didn't want to talk to me or see me. She's avoided me all day._

_Well, I hope you can fix things with her._

_Yeah... you go back to America next week, right?_

_Yes._

_I want to meet up with you some time so you can deliver Salome's birthday present for me._

_It'll have to be the day before I leave._

_That's fine. See you then._

* * *

"Have you and Daisy talked?" Alex asked shortly after they were seated at their table for lunch where they met the day before she would be leaving for America.

"Yeah," he said solemnly, placing the box that contained Salome's present on the table.

"What did she say?"

"She tried to apologize at first," Matt began, and Alex raised her eyerbrows in surprise. "But I assured her I was the one who needed to apologize. In the end, she said she overreacted and just asked me to ask her next time I wanted to have a party."

"Well, I'm glad you worked things out," Alex lied as she released a deep breath.

They ate for a while, and after their meal Alex pointed to the box. "What did you get her?" she asked.

Matt grinned. "It's a glow-in-the-dark paint set. Thought she might think it was cool."

"Oh, she'll love it!" Alex smiled before looking away and beginning to think about what he had said to her the other night.

"Is something on your mind, Kingston?" Matt asked, as if reading her mind.

"Matt..what you said the other night...about being," she paused, struggling with the words she still didn't quite believe, "...attracted to me..." she began, and he couldn't help but smirk a bit. "Did you mean it?"

"Of course I meant it. What stupid bloke wouldn't be attracted to you?" he told her, and she looked away and blushed. "Does it upset you?"

"No...it's just... a little surprising, I guess...you're so young. And I guess I'm a bit worried about our friendship,"

"It doesn't change anything between us, Alex," he told her softly. "I'll admit, I probably wouldn't have said it if I wasn't a bit tipsy but it was the truth. I never told you because I thought it'd make things awkward between us and I didn't...I don't want that."

"Alright," she nodded nervously, breathing a bit heavier than usual.

"Alex," Matt looked at her sternly.

"Hmm?" she pulled her eyes level to his.

"We can act like our normal, flirty selves. I can be attracted to you and we can still be friends."

Yes...friends...yes of course," she nodded in agreement, still trying to wrap her head around the fact that a 29 year old was attracted to her. Matt Smith was attracted to_ her_.

"Has Steven told you when you'll be back?" he broke the silence.

"For the finale in a few weeks."

"Can't wait," he smiled at her, trying not to show that he was hurt by her awkward demeanor. He really didn't want this to affect their friendship.

here...


	12. Penny Drops

**I decided last-minute to split this chapter into two parts, so I will update the other one soon. Thank you lovely people for reviewing!**

* * *

Weeks passed after Alex's birthday and Matt continued to stay late on filming days, mostly avoiding Daisy. Their relationship was slowly crumbling, but he didn't know how to tell her he didn't love her anymore. Sometimes he questioned if he ever loved her at all. When Alex was brought back for the finale, however, he was the happiest he had been in a long while. They recieved the script for the Wedding of River Song shortly after she filmed her small part in Closing Time, and they both appeared at the read-through the following morning with bright smiles.

"Hello, Matt!" Alex squealed as she laid eyes on him. She flung her arms around him without a second thought.

"Alex!" he lost himself in her embrace, swinging her back and forth and wishing he didn't have to let her go.

"Alright, everyone, this is the big finale!" Steven welcomed everyone at the read-through. Alex didn't hesitate to sit next to Matt as usual, and he was so relieved that she was no longer awkward around him like she had been when she left.

"The Wedding of River Song is the title," Karen noted, smirking smugly. "River Song is going to marry the Doctor, isn't she?! I knew it! I called this one!" she clapped excitedly.

"Just read the script, Kaz," Matt told her as they sat down and read through their lines. "God, Steven, this is ridiculous!" Matt laughed, trying to imagine the concept Steven had laid out. His heart raced as he neared the end of the script. The wedding scene.

"Well you may kiss the bride," Alex spoke bittersweetly.

"I'll make it a good one," Matt replied nervously.

"You better."

"I guess this means we're married now!" Matt laughed, nudging Alex and winking at her.

"You're my son-in-law!" Karen cried, laughing and leaning on Matt's shoulder fondly.

"You better treat our daughter right, or I'll come after you, ya bloke!" Arthur joked, while Matt and Alex looked at one another with smug faces.

When the read through finished, everyone complimented Steven on the script then they headed to the set to begin filming. Alex wasn't in the first few scenes, so it was a few days before Matt filmed with her. She still stuck around off-set, enjoying the company of the Doctor Who crew.

"Oi, wife!" Matt called to Alex as he saw her at a picnic table outside the set. He sat down next to her, and she beamed up at him innocently. God, she was so beautiful.

"Yes, husband?" she looked up at him smugly, popping a potato crisp in her mouth.

"Since we're married now, I think we should eat lunch together. Every day," he insisted with a grin.

"Oh do you now?" she asked with a coy smirk. "Well I'm not sharing mine; you can get your own."

"Well, I already ate today, but tomorrow I expect your full presence!" he took his finger and pressed it down on the picnic table several times before bopping her on the nose.

"God, you're ridiculous!" she laughed at him, shaking her head in a way that made her beautiful curls bounce.

Being around her again was so intoxicating. He missed the way she laughed, he missed staring at the shapes and lines that formed her face, he missed her tantalizing curls and her sexy curves. He missed her flirtacious personality, her refreshing scent, the way she would tease him and how he got to call her by her surname. He missed her beautiful eyes and soft lips, and the expressions she would make with her ridiculously adorable face. He wasn't only attracted to her; he really properly liked her, possibly even more than he knew. He was slipping deeper into the agony of not being able to have her. She knew that he was attracted to her now, but she hadn't said anything about it after their small chat a couple of months ago. However, she didn't know all the other wonderful things that he loved about her so much. She didn't know how much he wanted to _be_ with her.

Days passed and he lived for the small moments that he got to see her. They'd have small talk and flirt, and also share laughter with Karen and Arthur as well. He called her 'wife' all week, seeming to enjoy it a bit too much despite the fact that it was just one big inside joke between the four of them.

* * *

The pyramid set took their breath away. It may not be the most conventional wedding, but in a way it was perfect for the Doctor and River. Alex's powerful acting sent Matt over the edge, drawing tears to his eyes as well. They fed off one another's energy, lighting up the screen in a way that made the entire crew beam.

He lost count of how many times he had to undo his bowtie and wrap it around her hands alone. The wedding scene took nearly two hours to film, but it was all worth it for the kiss.

They swapped lines, and then kissed. Steven had wanted them to let go and give this kiss their all and that is exactly what they did. Matt's lips crashed against hers with absolute passion, and she felt it even more now that she knew about his attraction towards her. The corners of her mouth pulled into a smile and she was hopelessly melting. Even when cameras cut, they'd giggle and touch fondly.

"Ooh, I could just kiss you all night!" Alex cried after one take, and his post-kiss giggle went into a very happy laugh. She turned her body around, her smile wide. _Oh God, did I really just say that?_ she thought to herself. Well, it wasn't like he minded. She knew full-heartedly that he was enjoying himself. He always did when he kissed her.

"And I, you, Miss Kingston," he responded, his heart pounding beneath his chest. Did she really mean that? He was getting paid to kiss this magnificent woman, and knowing she liked it made it even better. Her hand still caressed his arm, sending tingly feelings throughout his whole body that was already shot with nerves. "What a lucky boy I am..." he said aloud, catching her off guard. She beamed at him, unable to forget what he told her back in March and feeling her heart flutter. How a sexy young man like Matt could possibly find her physically appealing surpassed her imagination, but the confidence it gave her made her glow. He _meant_ it when he said that he was lucky, and she knew that.

They filmed a few more takes, and she melted at the last one, biting her lip and hugging him tightly. She leaned her cheek on his shoulder fondly, stroking his arm. Alex felt like she hadn't in a long while. His kisses made her feel dizzy and girly like a young woman being romanced by a charming man. Oh, and Matt was so incredibly charming. She loved the way he would pull her in while they kissed, caressing her face and tugging on her wild curls. She really could kiss him all night.

"Alright, that's a wrap!" the director called and everyone clapped and cheered. Series six had finished filming.

Matt and Alex could not stop staring at one another, laughing and blushing from the sheer giddiness they felt. "Well, I guess I'll see you around this summer," Alex walked up to Matt. "I'll be staying with my sister in Surrey."

"That's great! Tell me that Salome will be with you?!" he asked excitedly.

"She will!" Alex beamed. "After a few weeks. She's spending half the summer in Germany with Florian, then the other half with Nicola and I. She's so excited!"

"Is she the only one that's excited?" Matt asked, cocking an (invisible) eyebrow. They began walking to their trailers, strolling casually with no one around to watch.

"Oh, I might be...not sure yet though," she teased.

"Come off it, Kingston. You know you're excited to spend time with me, too! After all, we are newlyweds," they laughed and she hugged him again as they walked. He wrapped an arm around her waist, not letting go this time. They were silent for a long while as they walked. She said nothing to him about his arm lingering about her waist, though it made her heart pound and her head spin and her stomach flutter about. Her whole body wanted him, and she needed to pry herself away before she caved to that want. But she let him hold her until she reached her trailer and then finally pulled from his loving touch. She smiled at him, bidding him fairwell before opening the door. Much to her surprise, however, he grabbed the door before it shut and stepped into her trailer with her. He couldn't take this anymore. He wanted Alex and he couldn't let her go, not this time. Not after being able to kiss her so passionately. His desire was unfunfilled, this thirst unquenched. He didn't know what he was doing. Adrenaline flushed through him like fire, overriding his senses and pushing for control.

Alex froze as she heard him step in behind her, unsure of what the hell he was doing. Tension filled the room, the light-hearted mood changing on the drop of a penny.

"Did you mean it?" he asked breathlessly, staring at her backside.

"What do you mean?" she asked, taken aback by the sudden question. She felt him step closer but she didn't turn around to face him. She felt his lips come close to her ear, and her mouth suddenly felt dry. Her eyes widened. _What is he doing?!_

"When you said you could kiss me all night...did you mean it?" he asked huskily, his hands sliding up her arms.

Her pulse had never been faster. She trembled a bit, unsure of his intent. "Matt, I think this crosses the line in terms of flirting."

"I'm not flirting with you. I'm asking you a serious question. Did you mean it?" his breath was hot and thick with desire, causing her body to break into chill bumps. Her head spun around, unable to think.

"Well, yes..." she finally turned around to face him, shocked by the seriousness of his gaze and the sheer longing in his eyes. "You're a great kisser, and I like kissing you, and..." she was cut off by his mouth pressed firmly on hers. She squeaked, but closed her eyes. Her form melted into his, his arms drawing her in as closely as possible. He moaned into her mouth from the relief of being able to kiss her. Not as the Doctor kissing River, no. This was him kissing her because he wanted her. His hands roamed everywhere, rubbing harshly against her curves and his thumbs caressing circles along the thin fabric of her dress. His fingers dug into her hips, as if trying to bring her impossibly closer with agonizing need.

Alex came to her senses and grabbed his face, prying it from her own. She panted wildly, looking into his eyes with a crazed expression. "What the HELL are you doing?!" she cried.

"I want you," he breathed heavily, his eyes boring into her own that were widening even more. "I've been hopelessly falling for you since the day we met. I thought it was just a silly crush at first, some undeniable attraction of sorts. But I can't get you out of my head. I told you I was attracted to you but Alex, it's so much...more than that," he trembled, his hands shaking as they cupped the sides of her flabbergasted face.

"You can't be serious! No. NO! _Matt_!" she pulled away from him, leaning as close as she could to the wall of her trailer. "You have a girlfriend! I thought you were better than this, Matt!" tears welled into her eyes and broke his heart. "I've been through this before, I know what it feels like. I don't care for Daisy, but I wouldn't put her through what Ralph put me through! No one deserves that kind of treatme.."

"I am NOTHING like him," Matt spat angrily, gritting his teeth.

"Oh really? Coming onto someone who's nearly twenty years older than you while you're in a supposedly committed relationship? Sure sounds like him. All you men are the same!" she scorned him.

"Alex, stop...just...stop..." he moved closer to her, trying to envelop her in his arms but she pushed him away.

"Don't touch me!" she cried with such strain in her shaking voice.

"I can fix this. I'll leave Daisy. I'll do anything, just please... I want to be with you!"

Alex stuck her jaw out, regaining a bit of confidence and removing herself from the wall's support. "Want to be with me? Matt, I'm nearly fifty! You have no business with me!"

"I don't care," Matt's voice cracked, his body boiling over with emotion. "I've never cared. All this time and all I was worried about was how_ you _felt. But I know you want me, too. You kissed me back, even if briefly, you still did it. Look me in my eyes and tell me you don't want to be with me and I will leave you alone!"

She seemed to ponder it for a moment before screeching,"I couldn't be with you! Regardless of how I feel..." tears stung her now-red cheeks and she could hardly pinpoint her exact emotion over the mass amount of shock she felt that he actually felt this way about her. Being attracted to her was one thing, but _this_? "Let's say we tried to make this RIDICULOUS idea work. You'll get whatever _silly_ _fantasy_ you have in your head out of your system and after a year or two,_ if that_, you realize how much I'm aging. You see the lines grow on my face more and more and my hair losing its color..." her voice broke and her strength crumbled, insecurity evident on her face, "...you realize I am old and you are young and you want someone younger and better and prettier and you just cast me aside like the rest have done," the pain from her past flickered into her watered eyes, before she regained her strength once more. She clenched her fists and gritted her teeth, her face becoming fierce with severity. "I'm not going to put myself through that. I'm not going to put my DAUGHTER through that! She's been through enough!" Realization struck her that not only did Matt just demolish their friendship, but that she would have to tell Salome why she couldn't talk to her Matty anymore.

His heart was shattering and he shook his head in denial. "No, Alex, no... I wouldn't... I would never hurt you. I would never hurt Salome. I love her. I love both of you," he reached for her face but she turned away, pressing herself to the wall again and tensing like she was afraid for him to touch her.

"Get out."

"Alex, please."

"GET OUT!" she screamed at him, opening the door to her trailer. "You've done enough damage! Just leave me alone! I don't want you! You're just a boy, and right now you're being a really STUPID boy! I will NOT have you make a fool of me, now GET OUT!"

He gulped, his heart sinking lower than ever. "I'm sorry..." he told her, before leaving her trailer.

Alex pressed her back against the door and slid down until she was hugging her knees. She sobbed into her dress, ripping out her curls as she tried to make sense of what had just happened.

"Matt, are you okay?" a set member asked Matt as he pushed past him, tears streaming his cheeks and his gaze cold.

Matt said nothing. He stormed into his own trailer and began throwing things around. He screamed, smashing a mirror with his fist. Blood trinkled down his arm but he cared less. All he could think about was how he probably lost Alex forever.


	13. Follow Your Heart

**For those of you who don't know, the "I could kiss you all night," "And I, you, Miss Kingston," thing from last chapter ACTUALLY happened, and you should go on Youtube and watch "Matt Smith and Alex Kingston Kiss in HD" because it is ADORABLE. :)**

**I will take this time to remind everyone that this Fanfic is set to MATURE. That's probably hard to remember because it's been mosty innocent aside from the first chapter! But explicit things are going to happen so I warn you before you trek on that this is about to get real adult. Won't say anything more beause, well, spoilers!**

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The cab ride to Nicola's seemed so much longer than it was. Alex held her tears, not wanting to draw attention from the crowd or the cab driver. When she showed up on her sister's doorstep, however, she could no longer hold it in. Nicola opened the door with a smile, but it immediately went away when her sister burst into a fit of sobs. "Alex?! Alex what's wrong?!" she cried, enveloping her older sister in her arms.

Alex struggled to answer and found she couldn't. Nicola held her as they walked back to the spare room and sat down on the bed. "What's wrong, sis...tell me what's wrong?" she continued to ask, patting her sister's curls with one arm and holding her hand tightly with the other. Alex was trembling and crying, and could only shake her head as Nicola asked. Sighing, Nicola gave up and just held her sister until she stopped crying.

Matt slammed through the doors of his home, bypassing Daisy in the living room.

"Ahem," he heard her growl.

He paced back to the living room, staring her in the eyes. "We need to talk," he said shakenly.

"Yeah, we do," she scoffed, and he could tell she was angry. "I know what's going on, Matt."

"You do?" he asked, his eyes widening.

"I'm not stupid. I've been trying to deny it for a few months now but I see the way you look at her. The late nights staying on set. The way you act torwards me. So tell me, Matt, how long have you been fucking her?" she shot, crossing her arms. She was crying, but her face was like stone worn from anger.

Matt sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "We haven't done...anything," he replied honesty as Daisy rolled her eyes and scoffed in disbelief. "No, really...I came on to her, but Alex turned me aw-"

"ALEX?!" Daisy screamed, her eyes widening and her jaw dropping as her whole body shook. "ALEX?! I WAS TALKING ABOUT KAREN!"

Oh. Matt's eyes widened. "Karen?" he said, voice thick with confusion. Karen, seriously? She thought he liked _Karen_?

"Oh, God, Matt you're SICK!" Daisy began slinging around kitchen utensils, shattering the plates across the floor. "How could you?! You...she's...she's old enough to be your mother! You're disgusting!" her words became barely able to decypher as she screamed and cried. "How could you want some old bitch over me?!"

Matt grew angry at her, stomping up to her and grabbing her wrists tightly to stop her from throwing. "Don't talk about her like that! Don't you dare fucking talk about her like that! What, you keep your cool when you think I'm fucking Karen behind your back but you want to get pissed because I tell you I came on to Alex?!" he spat in her face, and suddenly she looked scared. Heartbroken even. He let go of her wrists and calmed himself. "All I did was kiss her and yes, it was wrong, and yes, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry because I should have ended this months ago. I don't love you anymore, Daisy."

"You used to love me once," she squeaked softly, her face wet from tears and her body racking from the sobs she was attempting to stifle.

He didn't want to do this. He didn't want to cause her pain. But the damage was done. He let this dig too deep, and now he had to shovel himself out of it. "Maybe I did, but neither of us are happy anymore and we need to lay this to rest..."

She shook her head at first, but then nodded painfully.

"I'm sorry, Daze," he spoke, and her heart seemed to break even more as he called her that. She pressed her forehead into his chest, clutching onto his shirt tightly as she sobbed.

"I'll get my things," she finally said after minutes of sobbing into his shirt. He nodded with a long sigh. "I'll try to be moved out by tomorrow night."

"I'll leave you be, then," he breathed, before leaving his home as a single man.

Throughout the rest of the week, Alex refused to tell Nicola what was wrong. Nicola knew something was absolutely, terribly wrong if Alex was keeping silent, but all she could do was be supportive until Alex was ready to open up.

Alex recieved endless messages through Matt the first week, but ignored them all.

Please talk to me, Alex.

Alex this is driving me crazy. Please talk to me.

Call me.

Answer my calls.

Kingston, please. I know I messed things up but at least let me talk to you.

It's important, please. Alex. I don't want to say this over text.

But it didn't matter what he said. There was nothing he could say, and she refused to talk to him. After the last text, she through her phone across the room and shattered it, no longer wishing to hear from him again.

Two weeks had past and Alex was finally regaining her composure again. She was able to speak to her daughter for the first time since the incident happened. Salome noticed something was wrong, but Alex insisted there wasn't. Her heart only lightened when her daughter reminded her that she would be in Surrey in a couple of weeks.

Alex shuffled across the kitchen with a hot cup of tea in hand after Skyping her daughter, barely listening to the news and the small talk between her aunt and uncle who were spending the weekend there.

'Shocking news today! Doctor Who star Matt Smith and model Daisy Lowe have called it quits after 18 months together,'

The sound of the tele was enough to reach Alex's ears. She dropped her mug and it shattered across the floor, sending hot tea flying across her bare feet.

"Alex!" Nicola cried, rushing into the kitchen and beginning to assist her mess of a sister in cleaning the pieces.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," Alex apologized over and over as her aunt and uncle asked if she was okay from the next room.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine...just clumsy," Alex called back to them.

"Ooh, Alex, dear, that's your co-star, isn't it? The one who plays your love interest," Alex's aunt began, and Nicola looked up in time to see the cold look on Alex's face ice over in yet another layer of pain. The clock started to tick in her younger sister's mind as she put the pieces together. "Now that's just not right. He's a brilliant actor but they should have gotten someone older for you. It just doesn't look right," her aunt continued, and Alex began to shake.

"He's just a young little thing, isn't he?" Alex's uncle chirped in as the television showed pictures of him and Daisy together.

"I have to go," Alex told her sister after the mess was cleaned. "Can I borrow your car?"

"Of course..." Nicola didn't hesitate to grab her keys, showing Alex to the door. They stepped out, and Alex was surprised to feel her sister's sudden embrace. "Lexi, I don't know what's going on other than what I can gather, but whatever you do... just follow your heart," she held the keys out in front of Alex's face and Alex managed a fake smile.

"Thanks, Nic," Alex grabbed the keys, kissing her sister's cheek and heading straight to Cardiff. She knew she couldn't really follow her heart, but she had to confront him about this. She couldn't run away from it anymore.

Rain poured in Cardiff and lightning raked across the sky. Alex could barely see the road through her tear-filled eyes and the blinding rain, but she made it safely to Matt's house. She stepped out of the car and ran through the storm to his front door, becoming soaked instantly. She banged on the door several minutes, pressing the doorbell repeatedly. She suddenly regretted wearing a white blouse today, because it now was wet and clung to her skin so that you could see virtually everything. Her hair draped across her shoulders, completely wet but sort of beautiful in a way.

Matt came to the door, his eyes widening in shock. "Alex!" he grabbed her arms, pulling her in from the rain and shutting the door. He looked at her, briefly aknowledging her very see-through shirt but paying more attention to her face because he was so very happy and bewildered to see her.

"What are you doing?!" she yelled at him.

"I was just trying to get you out of the rain," he defended, not bothering to hide the hurt on his face.

"No, not that! Daisy! I saw it on the news," she informed him. He opened his mouth to speak but she took his place and continued, "I will not have you ruin your life for me, Matt!"

"I'm not ruining my life," he told her softly. "With or without you, I didn't love Daisy anymore. I don't regret breaking up with her."

Alex's eyes flutterred to her feet, but then she looked up quickly. "It doesn't change anything. Just because you ended it with her doesn't mean I'm going to drop everything and come running to you and forget all the other reasons why we shouldn't be together."

"If you aren't running to me, then why are you here?" he asked, looking her up and down in a way that made her shudder even more than she already was from the water all over her body. "Why didn't you just call?"

"I broke my phone," she answered with a hint of shame.

"Alex..." Matt stepped closer to her, his fingers trailing her waist. "I know you think I'm just a stupid boy. I know you've been hurt and I know you think I'm going to hurt you, too, but if I had one doubt in my mind that I wouldn't be able to make you happy then I would never have said anything."

"Matt, I have _nothing _to offer you," she pleaded, tightening her mouth as he stepped closer to her. "I..." her voice broke and she began to cry again. "You need someone that can give you their best years and all mine are gone. You deserve a young wife, someone who can give you kids because you are so great with kids," she thought of Salome and smiled in the most heart-wrenching of ways.

"I don't want that. All I want is you and Salome, that's all I want," he put his hands in hers, lacing their fingers. He leaned closer, his forehead on hers and she could feel the warmth radiating from his body.

"I...I don't know what to do," she looked up at him, shaking. This was wrong in so many ways. She had been hurt so much that she didn't know if she could handle this again, but if she walked away she'd be breaking her own heart and how was that any better?

"Follow your heart."

Her eyes shot wide open, and she remembered Nicola's words to her. Those same, cheesy words like fate intended for her to hear them twice. She looked up into his face, grabbing it and pulling his face closer until his lips were on hers. She felt him smile on her mouth, and he kissed her with unfeinted passion. He drew her in closely, the wetness of her clothes seeping onto his grey flannel shirt and jeans. His arms roamed her body, finding her breast. She shrieked and drew back.

"Sorry," Matt shot, blush creeping on his cheeks as he pulled his hand away sharply.

"No, no it's fine..." Alex whimpered, having not been touched that way in years. She took his hand, slithering it up her body and back onto her breast. She pulled him back into the kiss as he began to fondle her lightly, picking at the buttons on her shirt until she was free from it. "It's okay," she reassured him between the kiss, becoming lost in her need to be touched by him. Her feelings overcame her. She glazed her fingers across his abdomen, causing him to shudder. She lifted his shirt until it reached his shoulders, and he lifted his arms so that she could remove it. Her touch skimmed across his shoulder blades, nails digging into the soft of his skin and making him groan.

"Alex," he broke the kiss, unsure of her intentions and not wanting to cross any lines despite how aroused she had him already.

She pecked him lightly on the lips, peppering kisses along his jaw until she reached his ear. "Take me," she whispered.

He smiled nervously and hoisted her up. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he pulled her shirt from her body. He carried her back to his room, kissing her fervently and moaning her name between hot kisses and bated breaths. He pressed her down onto his bed, feeling her undressing him feverishly. He pulled away from her lips, trailing his own down her soaking wet body and kissing the drops of salty rain. He reached her lower abdomen, tugging the button of her pants open with his teeth and sliding the zipper down with his hands. She helped tug them off, and he laid kisses along her legs, lapping his tongue over her knees in a way that made her toes curl.

"Matt," she whimpered his name, and he grinned, returning to her lips and kissing her passionately. She removed his pants and couldn't help but draw away from the kiss as she pulled his boxers off as well, just to have a look at him first. She gasped. How the hell was she going to fit THAT in there?

He grinned smugly with himself, quickly catching on to what she was thinking. He looked down at her body, still wet from the rain and shining like wax under the flickering light caused by the bolts that still danced in the night sky. He admired every inch of her glistening skin, like she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He watched as she removed her own bra, and in unison he removed her silk panties. He cupped one breast into his hand, and bowed his head to take a hard nipple into his mouth. She arched her back, moaning in an unexpectedly high pitch. He lost himself, licking and sucking her nipples, back and forth between the two. She bucked her hips, pleading for him with every moan.

"Matt, please," she breathed, her longing evident in her voice. She grabbed him just above his bum, pushing him until he was grinding against her.

"Con..dom.." he choked heavily as he felt her wet flesh.

"Can't...get pregnant," she gasped, rolling her hips in persuasion. "Clean. You?"

"Yeah. Clean. Sure about this?" her brisk nod was all he needed, and he plunged into her slowly.

"Oh, Matt! Matt..." she threw her head back, digging her fingers into his hips to force him to quicken his pace.

He didn't oblige, however, shoving in and out of her almost _painfully_ slow. He kissed her forehead, bending his head down and whispering sweet things into her soft curls about how beautiful she is and how much he wanted her.

Lightning still raged outside as they made love, and a loud crack ripped through the wind. Alex gasped, jumping into his arms and wrapping herself around him.

"Shh, it's okay," he whispered into her ear, setting her back down and still pushing into her slowly. "Just a little lightning. You're safe with me, baby."

Her legs remained wrapped around him, pulling him in deeper. He groaned, finally quickening his pace. Her moans became increasingly louder. Pleasure racked through her whole body and her world crumbled suddenly with a blood-curling scream. Matt, turned on by the release of her orgasm, came soon after, panting heavily against her ear. He smiled, dragging his face alongside hers and kissing her nose tenderly.

"I can't believe we did that," Alex closed her eyes and smiled.

He sat up, gazing at her from head-to-toe. She was glistening, even more wet than she was when she came in due to the droplets of sweat that covered her body. He lay beside her, pulling her body close to his. She nestled her head under his neck, her mind and heart racing.

"Do you regret it?" Matt asked, nuzzling the top of her head lovingly.

"No," Alex replied shamelessly, biting her lip and kissing his collar bone. "I'm just expecting to wake up any minute now."

He chuckled, holding her tighter. "You are...amazing," he told her honestly.

"Really? That's surprising, considering it's been a while," she tried to remember the last time she actually slept with somene. Florian had been the last, and it was well before he ever asked for the divorce. It had just been her and the rabbit for so long now, and there was something alien about Matt's touch that went beyond the fact that it had been a while. He was tender and sweet, romantic and passionate, something she was not accustomed to and it made her head swirl with emotions she hadn't quite felt before.

"I meant just you. In general. You are amazing, Alex," he spoke softly, gracing his fingertips across her back and making her shudder. This was something new entirely to him. It wasn't just sex; he made love to her in a way so different than the other times he had been with women.

She smiled at his words, enjoying having him hold her afterwards instead of flopping over to his side like Ralph or Florian would do. She could get used to this, she thought. "I need to return Nicola's car," she noted. "She needs it back by tomorrow."

"Well then return it tomorrow," he told her, combing his fingers through her tangled hair. "Stay with me tonight? Please?"

She couldn't ignore the sweetness in his eyes and she smiled. "Alright. But we have to get up _really_ early, Matt, I'm serious," she caressed his arm, pecking his lips softly.

He reluctantly let her go, only to set an alarm on his phone for as early as he was willing to get up. "Five thirty, sharp," he whispered, engulfing her in his embrace and fluttering his eyes shut. "Goodnight, Kingston."

"Goodnight, darling," she said breathlessly, enjoying the feeling of their naked bodies pressed together and dozing off to sleep.

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**So that's that. I'm completely rubbish at writing sex scenes so I apologize! But at least Matt and Alex are finally together and I can quit with all that angst because it was killing me! For those of you wondering, this isn't the end! More to come! **


	14. You Make Me Glow

The sound of the alarm rang at exactly five-thirty the next morning. Alex groaned, nestled so comfortably in Matt's arms that she didn't want to move.

Matt sighed, reaching over and turning the alarm off. He reached back over, smiling happily at the woman in his arms. "Good morning, beautiful," he spoke in a husky tone, pressing a sweet kiss on her nose.

She smiled, butterflies filling her stomach._ Not used to that_. "Good morning," she replied groggily, opening her eyes and gazing at his innocent baby face. _Definitely not used to that_. She realized how terrible she must look at the moment, and so she turned from him and grabbed her clothes.

Matt grinned, staring at her backside shamelessly. He admired the muscle in her shoulder blades, the perfect curves, the buttermilk skin, and that_ glorious_ bum. He was taken from his admiration by her sudden gasp. "What is it?" he asked, walking over to his closet to dress as well but not taking his eyes off of her.

"My clothes," she replied, holding them up. "They're still kind of... wet."

"Oh," Matt remembered they had been drenched in the rain only a few hours ago. "Well, you have two options. You can wait a little while they dry, or you can wear my clothes."

Alex bit her lip, and she looked so sexy just standing there naked with no make-up and her hair absolutely RIDICULOUS, biting her lip and pondering which option she rather take.

"I would prefer to return the car as early as possible, but it may be a little awkward to explain to my sister why I'm wearing men's clothes," she began. "And besides, have you SEEN the way you dress? I'm almost fifty years old, Matt, I'm not running around looking like some hipster cross-dresser."

Matt gasped, putting his hand over his heart. "You did NOT just say that, Kingston!"

She grinned. "Oh, I believe I did," she sat back down on the bed. "What are you going to do about it?"

He gulped. Damn it why did she have to be so sexy? "Punish you," he finally replied, dropping the clothes he had picked out and walking torwards her with a sheepish smile.

Alex rolled over, showing off her bum. "Mmh, what are you going to do? Spank me?"

"Actually," Matt began, climbing over her and flipping her body over forcefully. He reached into the third drawer of his dresser, pulling out two ties. "I have something much better in mind."

Her eyebrows raised, but she laughed as he began to tie her to the bed post. She struggled half-heartedly, but allowed him to tie her. When he finished, his lips travelled to hers and he kissed her tenderly for a moment. "Give me one moment," he told her, jumping off of her and picking up her clothes. "I'll put them on for a good dry while you get nice and wet," he winked at her.

She rolled her eyes. Cheeky bastard. "Hurry up, then!"

He grinned, disappearing for a few minutes. She heard him running down the hall, definitely in a hurry, and he skid to a stop in front of the door. He pounced onto her, and she giggled, wriggling underneath him. "Now, Kingston, are you ready for your punishment?" he asked, dipping his head down low and nipping at her neck.

She moaned, fluttering her eyes closed and tilting her head to give him more neck space. "Do your worst."

He smiled into her neck, sliding his lips across the delicate skin. She emitted a series of pleasant moans, her hips rolling against his body. He took his time, kissing from her neck, down her arms, along her collar-bone, making sure he didn't miss a single inch. Her hip rotations quickened and her moans became louder when he began fondling her breasts. She tried pulling from the bondage, but he had the knot fairly secure. He smirked as he teased her, hearing her whimper as he made his kisses even slower. His teeth skimmed across her meridian, from her stomach to her navel. He kissed around it, causing her to squirm. He continuously peppered kisses along her abdomen, occasionally nipping so close to where she wanted him most.

"Matt, please, I can't," she bucked her hips, beckoning for him to take her.

His smirk widened, and he placed his face between her thighs, breathing his hot breath onto the now-soaked area. She grabbed his face with her thighs, trying to pull him in but he retracted quickly, seperating her legs and continuing to kiss along the inside of her thighs.

"Matt!" she growled in frustration and arousal.

"This is what you get, Kingston," he responded, leaving a trail of kisses all the way to her ankle.

It was incredibly hot, she had to admit, but she was so deprived from sexual intimacy that this was just agonizing. "Please, just touch me," she pleaded.

"I am touching you," he replied, clearly amused as he tapped his fingers along the leg he was holding up.

"You know what I meant you cheeky bastard!" she picked her head up and slammed it back down on the pillow.

He smirked. His mouth moved to her other ankle, and he kissed her from there until his mouth was on hers. He grazed a fingertip across her folds, and she jumped with a high-pitched squeal. He couldn't help but laugh, enjoying seeing her so vulnerable like this. "Like that?" he whispered in her ear and she nodded vigorously.

"More," she begged, and he kindly obliged, slipping a finger into her and pressing against her wall. He lifted his thumb, pressing hard against her clit for only a couple of seconds. This induced an indescribable noise and flailing legs. He removed his hand, then dropped his face between her legs once more and she froze. He rubbed his nose in a circle around her swollen clit, causing her to clench and shudder and whimper.

"PLEASE," she groaned, oh how he loved to hear her beg. He pressed his tongue against her and she hugged him with her thighs, releasing a sharp mewl. He plunged his tongue as far as it would go, nibbling and sucking at her folds as he licked the inside of her.

Alex gasped, pressing herself against him and moaning louder. Hell, he was ridiculously good at this and without saying so she let him know it. He was barely down for a minute when her legs began to shake and her orgasm washed over her. She relaxed her body but her legs were completely stiff. He pulled away from her, leaving gentle kisses along her body as he cupped her face. "I hope you learned your lesson," he whispered, beginning to untie her.

She laughed, grabbing his shoulders once she was freed and rolling him over onto his back. "Oh, but I'm the one who's supposed to be teaching YOU a lesson. I'm Mrs. Robinson, don't you remember?" she asked, dipping down and kissing his lips as she began to grind over his cock.

Matt gasped, flinching as he felt her wet flesh against him. He throbbed against her, admiring her body in this particular position. "Do teach me a lesson, Mrs. Robinson," he persuaded with a coy smirk.

"As you wish, Benjamin," she purred, raising her bum until he was centered at her opening. She pushed down, engulfing him inside her. He released an aching moan, grabbing her hips so that he may move them. "Nah, ah, ah," she smacked his hands away, grabbing his wrists and pinning them above his head.

He gulped, panting slightly as he watched her ride him. He wriggled beneath her, moaning her name repeatedly. She smiled, moving in a way that took all his knowledge of sex and blew it out of the water.

"Alex, gonna.."he gasped and she released his hands, allowing him to grab her hips and shove them in speedy rotation as he lost movement in his legs. He released himself with a loud groan, trembling from underneath her. She smiled, dipping low and pecking his quivering lips. She was about to pull away, but his hands dragged up her back, pulling her closer to him and deepening the kiss. She whimpered softly, cupping his face with her hand and relaxing her body against his.

Matt broke the kiss, smiling and staring up at her beautiful face. She closed her eyes and hid her face in his neck, kissing it softly. "Are you going to your sister's alone?" Matt asked.

She was quiet for a bit, seemingly caught off guard by the question. "Well, I can't exactly bring you."

Matt frowned but nodded in understanding. "What are you going to do about your phone? You know, so I can get in touch with you."

"I'll get a new one later this afternoon and call you, okay?" she told him, and he nodded. He held her for a bit longer, before hearing the dryer finish. He frowned even more, almost afraid to let her go. "That's your cue," he sighed, reluctantly releasing her and putting on his pajamas. He led her to the dryer, taking out her clothes for her. She reached to grab them but he held them over his head.

"Matt!" Alex cried with a smile as he jerked her clothes from her. "What are you doing?!"

"Promise I'll see you again soon?" he beckoned, seemingly nervous about her reply. Like he thought she was going to leave and just forget this ever happened.

She looked at him, a small smile tugging at her lips. "I promise,"

He handed her clothes over, catching a glimpse of her naked figure one last time. She quite liked his roaming gaze, and blushed a bit as she put her clothes on. "Are you just going to stand there and watch me dress?"

"Yep," he replied with a naughty grin and she rolled her eyes. "Don't act like you don't like it, Kingston."

She buttoned up her shirt, leaving a bit of cleavage to show. She then tugged on her pants, shaking her head at him. "Oh, believe me, I like it. I just don't understand why you do."

He pulled her waist in, kissing her yet again. "Because you are beautiful," he whispered over her lips. She looked up at him and smiled, clearly a bit in a daze. "And sexy," he added with a smirk, bending his head and nipping at her neck.

"If you say so, darling," she blushed, wrapping her arms around him. This all felt so strange. Twenty-nine year old man finding her attractive, shagging said man despite a nineteen-year age gap, confusing romantic feelings jumbled into the mix. She wasn't quite sure what to make of this, yet, but she felt happy. He made her glow like she hadn't in years.

"I know so," he pulled back, brushing her cheek with the back of his hand and smiling at her.

She returned the smile, whipping around and beginning to leave. He followed her to the door, watching the way her hips swung when she walked. "Drive safe," he told her as he opened the door for her, peering out onto the lovely day.

"If I made it through the pouring rain last night, I'm sure I'll be fine," she released a short laugh, turning around and looking upon his worried face. "Are you alright, Matt?"

"Yeah...yeah, I'm fine," he forced a smile, but his heart was tightening in fear of letting her go. He embraced her tightly, kissing her cheek upon pulling away. "See you later, Kingston?"

"Of course," she smiled, dangling her keys and walking over to Nicola's car.

He sighed, closing the door before he changed his mind and ended up begging her to stay. "She'll call you," he told himself nervously, not knowing where he stood with her yet. He hadn't exactly asked her to be his girlfriend, even though it had been his obvious intent despite being unspoken. He wasn't sure if he should ask, or what he should consider her to be, or even how she felt about it. That last bit scared him the most. He was so afraid she'd get away, clear her head, start having second doubts, and all this would have been a couple of shags to release the sexual frustration between them. Matt never had his heart broken before, but he was sure that would do the trick.

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**Ughhh I'm so rubbish at wibbly wobly sexy wexy ness. Hope I don't scare you all off, ha! Thank all the lovely reviewers who have stayed with me through this. **


	15. But I Cover Up, Won't Let It Show

**In case you were wondering, yes I got these chapter titles from a Demi Lovato song. Oops, my other fandom is showing. Anyway, chapter is finally up! Please review because reviews make me happy inside!**

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The scent of banana pancakes filled the room, and Alex was surprised Nicola was up so early, much less making breakfast.

"Better?" were Nicola's first words when Alex came through the door.

Alex managed a small smile. "A little," she replied, quick to change the subject with, "Breakfast looks delicious!"

"Only a little?" Nicola ignored her big sister's change in subject, cocking a brow and setting the table. "I would hope it'd be more than that considering you kept the car the whole night."

"I'm sorry!" Alex was quick to apologize, her face stretching into a sickly, tooth-baring frown.

"I'm not concerned about it, Lexi," Nicola laughed at her, pulling a chair out and passing Alex a plate. "I just want to know how it went with Matt."

Alex was halfway into reaching for her pancakes when she froze. "How did you?"

"I don't know details, but I'm your sister and I pay attention," Nicola answered quickly, taking a pleased-with-herself bite of her breakfast. "You can start from the beginning and explain that way, if you like."

Alex was hesitant, but sighed with defeat when Nicola promised that she wouldn't tell a soul. She told her everything. From the crush she had on him, to the reveal that he returned said affection, to the fight and then to her coming home in tears. "And then, when I heard on the tele about Daisy, I had to confront him about it. I wasn't going to let him ruin his life over me, no matter how much distaste I have for Daisy. I still thought it was ridiculous he would even consider being with someone my age. But when I saw him, oh, Nicola... you should have seen his face and heard his words. I melted and we...we..." she began to blush, nervously stuffing her face with pancakes.

"You slept with him, didn't you?!" Nicola gasped a bit, still smiling. The look on Alex's face said it all. "Well no wonder you kept the car over night!" Alex hid her face in her hands, her face washed in scarlet. Nicola only laughed at her. "Well, how was it?" she asked.

"Well the first time it was actually really sweet, but-"

"THE FIRST TIME?!" Nicola cried, her mouth gaping. "Good lord, Alex how many times did you have a go at him?!"

"Just twice, just twice!" Alex reassured her, patting the air in front of her. "And the second time was pretty hot. He knows how to use his sonic screwdriver, I'll say that much!" Alex laughed, still hiding her face in her hands. For a while the sister's just laughed, waving their hands in front of their faces like idiots.

"So, what now?" the younger sister asked when she finally stopped laughing.

"I don't know, Nicki" Alex sighed with a raise of her eyebrows. "I mean, there's no way this could really work. He's almost twenty years younger than me!"

Nicola frowned, nodding her head. "I can understand. I can't say I'm not skeptical about it."

Alex's heart sank and she didn't hide it. "Would you do it?"

"If I had a hot man in his twenties barding for MY attention?" Nicola laughed at the thought, shaking her head. "Honestly, no. I don't think I could trust him. Good men are so hard to find these days, especially one that seemingly perfect."

Alex pushed her plate away, burying her face in her arms and groaning. "He really is perfect. He could have any woman he wanted, why the hell would he waste his time on me?"

Nicola's mouth twitched almost uncomfortably, and she reached for her sister's backside, rubbing it in comfort. "You are beautiful, sis, and one of the most wonderful people I know. Any man would be lucky to have you."

Alex looked up, smiling softly. "Thank you, Nicola."

"I'd like to meet him. Hard to give you advice when I don't really know the guy," Nicola suggested, and Alex's face went pale. "Maybe not right away, but whenever you're comfortable."

"I'm not sure I'll ever be comfortable," Alex sighed. "I mean, what happens when I'm sixty and he is forty? I'd be shocked if it even lasted that long. Some young thing will come bopping along, fawning over him, he'll realize this was all some silly fantasy and then I'll get my heart broken again. I don't think I could take it this time," her voice broke a little bit and she shuddered.

Nicola finished her breakfast and Rose, getting the dish water started. She waited a long while before responding, "I don't know Matt, but from what I've heard from you and Salome.. he doesn't sound like Florian or he-who-must-not-be-named," she paused, and Alex had a good laugh at that. Nicola pressed a soft kiss to her sister's head then hugged her lightly. "Just be careful."

"I don't think there's a careful way to fall in love," Alex bit her lip, smiling slightly. "Do you mind taking me into town? I kind of need a new phone."

The subject changed as Alex had to explain what happened to her phone and show her little sister the pieces of it, which ended in Nicola dragging Alex out the door nagging and rolling her eyes.

It had been twelve hours since she left. Twelve. 5:30 in the afternoon and he hadn't heard a peep from her. Matt paced the halls of his house, his heart pounding. He couldn't eat or let go of the phone he was constantly checking. To keep himself occupied, he had cleaned until his house was spotless. Now he had a ridiculously clean house and an aching heart. He was going to lose his mind.

"I shouldn't do this," he whispered to himself, sitting down at the computer and opening Skype. "I really shouldn't do this," he repeated, finding Salome's name. He hesitated, but clicked to call.

A frown came across the young girl's face when she saw Matt's face appear on her laptop. Normally, she'd be happy to talk with Matt, but having him phone her at this hour without her mum around was just weird. However, she answered the call, much to the twenty-nine year old's delight.

"Matty?" she asked, her brows furrowed.

"Hey, poppet!" Matt greeted her, scratching the back of his head nervously.

"Please don't talk loud. If my daddy hears you, he'll be upset," she whispered.

"Why is that?" Matt asked softly.

Salome looked down, frowning a bit. "He doesn't like it when I talk about you. He and mommy got into a fight about it when he found out. I'm not supposed to talk to you when I'm here."

Anger brewed in Matt's heart. He'd never met Florian, but he already couldn't stand him. But he didn't want to get Salome in trouble. "Well, I'll let you go, but if you talk to your mom... can you tell her to call me? Please?"

Salome's brow cocked. She was ten. Not stupid. "Why don't you just contact her?"

"Can't. She broke her phone."

"She told me she was getting a new phone right after she got off of Skype with me earlier."

Matt's eyes brightened. "Great! How long ago was that?"

"About five hours ago..."

Matt's heart sank. Surely she would have called by now. Maybe she was changing her mind? Maybe she didn't want anything to do with him anymore.

"Did something happen between you and mom? She acted weird when I asked her about you earlier," Salome said, prying for information.

"I kissed her," was all Matt could say to her innocent ears.

"Not as the Doctor kissing River?!"

"Nope," Matt couldn't help but smirk a bit as Salome squealed.

Then, her heart dropped as she heard footsteps and her dad calling to her. Matt didn't understand, since it was in German.

Salome nervously replied, and Matt got the hint. He ended the Skype call, angry at Florian now. That just added on to the series of emotions he was feeling and made it worse instead of better.

* * *

Alex had her new phone and her contacts restored, but she couldn't bring herself to call Matt. She didn't know what to say, or how to handle it. She had to be sensible about this. She wasn't exactly young anymore, so acting like she was wouldn't help her situation.

A frown crossed her face when she recieved an incoming call from Salome, who she had spoken to only hours later. She answered it quickly, heart pounding like a worried mother's would. "Salome? Baby, is everything okay?"

"Yeah, mom...I just wanted to relay a message."

Alex raised her eyebrows, anger flashing across his face. "If your dad has anything to say, he can call me himself. You are not his messenger pigeon, do you understand?"

"No, not him, Matty!"

Alex dropped her phone and fell to the floor trying to keep it from hitting the floor and shattering again. "WHAT?!" her immediate reaction was to scream, but she quickly realized her mistake and calmed down. "I mean, what...when did you talk to Matt, sweetie?"

"Just now. He told me he kissed you!"

Alex's eyes widened. Oh, she was going to KILL him. "He...did...what..."

"Well, I asked! You were acting weird earlier when I asked about him and...and..."

"Did he call you or did you call him?"

For some reason, Salome felt like her mother would be angry if she knew Matt called her. She didn't often lie to her mom, but this was probably one of those necissary times. "I called him," she lied like an actress.

"You know you're not supposed to do that," Alex scorned, but her anger towards Matt drifted away. He would be rude not to accept her daughter's Skype call. But he still shouldn'y of told her about the kiss. "Your dad is already very cross with me."

"I know," Salome bit her lip. "But it's not fair! I love Matty!"

Alex was silent.

"Did daddy tell you that you couldn't talk to Matty, too?"

Alex's mouth dropped. "Of course not! I'm a grown woman, sweetheart."

"Then why won't you talk to him?"

Once again, Alex was silent.

"I know you like him, mom. I've known for a while. And he likes you, too. He told me a long time ago but he made me promise not to tell you."

Alex gaped at her daughter's words. "How long?"

"When we went outside that day we went to his party thing. I already knew before then, though. I see the way he looks at you."

Her mother's hand clasped over her heart.

"So why won't you just get together already?!"

"Salome..."

"You adults are so silly! Matt's the prince and you're the princess! You're supposed to kiss and live happily ever after, that's how it works!"

She didn't have the heart to tell her daughter that life isn't a movie, and really she was too shocked that her daughter even knew about all of this to say anything at all. "If I promise to call Matt will you give it a rest?"

"Yes ma'am," Salome said with a triumphant smile.

"Alright. I will. Now you get off the phone before your father hears you and haves a fit!"

She didn't have to tell Salome twice. The line ended without so much as a goodbye, and Alex put down her phone like she didn't know what to do or say or even think.

* * *

It was another two hours before Matt recieved the phone call from Alex. He answered it, to her surprise, before it even really rang.

"Alex?!" he cried into her ear.

"Hello," she replied, her heart hammering.

"What took so long, love?" Matt asked, smiling and gulping and flailing his hand nervously about his side.

"I've just been thinking."

Matt felt pain shoot down his throat and into his stomach. "Th-thinking? Really? Uh, what were you, uh...thinking...about?"

"What do you think?" she answered smoothely, and she heard him gulp hard from over the line.

"Alex, if you're having second thoughts, I..."

She interrupted him by saying an address.

"Whot?"

"My sister's address, get a sheet of paper," she told him, hearing him immediately fumble around. She could have sworn she could hear stuff breaking, but she wasn't in the mood to ask. When he returned to the phone, she repeated it. "I just want to talk to you in person, okay?"

"Be there as soon as possible," Matt replied nervously, finding his keys and heading for the door.

"See you soon," she said softly, with a touch of sadness to her voice.

Matt's brain wracked the whole ride to Nicola's. He wasn't sure what she meant by this, but he was meeting her sister so that had to be good, right?

* * *

Dinner brewed in the kitchen, though this time Alex came to Nicola's assistance. She looked rather adorable with a red apron hanging over her green-and-plaid sun dress. Her hair was left down, and she wore soft makeup other than the same bright pink lipstick she wore when she went to the pub with Matt the night she got drunk.

She was interrupted by a knock on the door, and she removed her apron to answer it.

Matt's eyes widened when he saw her, and it took everything he had not to scoop her into his arms when he saw her again. "You... you look beautiful,"he sputtered out loud enough for Nicola to hear, and she smiled, entering the dining room to set the table.

"So, this is the eleventh Doctor!" Nicola said, walking torwards them. "In football shorts and a wife-beater," she laughed as she looked at his attire.

"Oh, yes...um...sorry! I didn't...I mean, I'm sorry I'm so underdressed. I walked out in whatever I had, I'm-"

"Oh, shush," Alex hugged him and his almost melted in her arms, pressing his nose into her velvet curls and sighing. He didn't hesitate to wrap his arms around her, relieved to have her be so friendly to him. "You look fine," she told him, pulling away from the hug. His arms lingered reluctanctly. "We made dinner!"

"That's really nice! Thank you. Haven't eaten all day," this seemed to catch Alex off guard and she frowned, hoping that she wasn't the cause but secretly knowing she was.

"Well, we've got plenty!" Nicola said, leading them into the dining room. Matt pulled a chair for Alex, making Nicola smile.

"Alex wasn't kidding when she said you're terrible at proper greetings," Nicola chuckled as Matt began to eat.

Matt's eyes widened and he stood up, almost falling out of his chair. "Oh, right, yes! I'm sorry, I'm a stupid bloke! I'm Matt, nice to meet you!" he held out his hand to her and she laughed as she shook it.

"Nicola, and the pleasure is mine," she released his hand, looking over to Alex who was hiding her face in her hands and laughing. Matt sat back down, shaking his legs nervously and stuffing a chunk of food in his mouth in distraction.

"He's a bit of a mess," Alex admitted, taking a sip of wine and smiling at him from across the table.

"So I see," Nicola commented, and Matt began to sink into his chair. First impression on the hopefully future girlfriend's sister wasn't exactly great. But then again, it was better than, "I like your shoes."

Alex seemed to read his mind, because she made a note to bring that up and they laughed greatly over it. Matt sank lower and lower into his chair.

"Would you like us to lower the table for you, darling?" Alex asked and Matt shot up with his eyes wide.

"We're only just playing, silly boy," Nicola told him. "I think you're adorable."

Adorable wasn't exactly what he was going for. Great job at trying to be mature, Matt. Great job.

"So, Matt," Nicola began as silence had passed. "You're wearing footballer shorts. Are you any good?"

Matt beamed, and Alex answered for him. "He's AMAZING!" she gushed, using her hands to emphasize the word 'amazing.' "You should see him kicking that thing around on set!"

"I almost went proffessional, actually. If it weren't for a bad injury, I wouldn't be the Doctor right now."

"Blessing in disguise," Nicola chuckled with delight, looking over to Alex. "Funny how those turn out."

Alex looked down at her plate, then up at Matt. The adorable way her mouth twisted sideways made him want to grab her from over the table and kiss her. Obviously, he refrained.

The trio finished dinner and to Nicola's surprised Matt jumped at the chance to do the dishes. She cocked a brow, having planned on leaving the two alone. She allowed him to help, giving Alex impressed looks.

Alex retired to her bedroom, asking Matt to join her when he was finished.

"No funny business," Nicola warned him and the look on her face told him she knew. He became very pale.

"Y-yes, of course," he sputtered, tucking his hands behind his back. "Of course not, I mean!" he then sauntered back to Alex's room. He knocked a bit, hearing her approval to come in. She gestured to the spot next to her, a small smile on her face. He sat down next to her, and he reached to kiss her.

She accepted the kiss, her face lighting up momentarily, but she broke it.

He brushed her cheek with his thumb, staring into the beauty of her soulful eyes. "Alex...I...I know I didn't make this clear last night but...I care about you... a lot, and...I want you to be my girlfriend."

Girlfriend. That word sounded so strange to her. She was used to being a mature wife that the word was merely silly to her. She wasn't even a_ girl _anymore in the slightest. She was all woman now, but he loved it more than she knew.

"Alex, say something?" Matt pleaded, worry on his face.

"I don't think we should jump into anything," she said bluntly, turning her face from him so that she didn't see how hurt he looked. She could only imagine. "I'm not saying we should just forget this ever happened," she continued, hearing him release the breath he had been surpressing. "but I'm not ready for that sort of commitment. Especially with my age..."

"I don't care how old you a-"

"I know, I know," she shushed him, finally looking at him. She sighed at his impossible baby face. "But I have a right to be skeptical. If you want my honest opinion, I have no doubt in my mind that this is going to end very badly."

"I don't want it to end at all," Matt told her, stroking her face lovingly.

"It hasn't begun," she tried to pull her face from his touch, but instead her face gravitated into his palm and she stroked it with her nose. "Not really. We can't be together. Not like that. Not in a relationship."

"What are you trying to suggest?" Matt asked, completely confused. She told him that she didn't want to just forget it happened, and yet she blatantly told him she didn't want a relationship.

"I'm trying to say it in the nicest way possible, sweetie."

Suddenly, he understood. "Oh," was all he could say.

"It's just casual sex," she reasoned when she noticed how upset he was. "I mean, we might as well, since it's happened already... that way we don't jump into a relationship, and we can both release our sexual tension, I don't know about you but I have a lot of that," she laughed slightly, but his face was stale. He was clearly not amused.

"So you just want to keep me on a string? Expect me to fuck you until I find someone else?" the harshness of his words surprised her, and she could see the fire and ice and rage that the Doctor's face so often held.

"Well, you're going to find someone else eventually. At least this way it won't hurt as much," she commented with a shrug, looking away from him.

He stood up, staring down at her face. Could she honestly not feel anything for him other than sexual attraction? After he poured his heart out to her, this was all she wanted from him? "Correction, it wouldn't hurt YOU as much," he snapped, his chest tightening in pain.

She looked up at him and she could see the hurt written on his face. "Matthew..." she breathed, reaching for his hands.

"I'm not going to pretend that all I want from you is sex, Alex. I can't," he pulled away from her grasp, turning and walking out the door.

She sighed, wrapping her hands in her hair and closing her eyes. She slammed her back onto the bed, tears escaping her eyes. She felt like she made the right decision, but it felt so wrong.


	16. Precious Things

**So I have come down with a REALLY bad case of writer's block! Ugh. This is no bueno. This chapter will be SLIGHTLY Smillan, but just try to take in consideration the type of friendship that Karen and Matt have. Also it makes the things that Matt did with Alex seem more normal (i.e. sleeping over at her house, hanging out) because they did those things without thinking anything romantic was between them.**

* * *

He didn't know how he was going to do this.

Matt paced back and forth in his trailer, donning his tweed jacket and bow tie. Series 7 wouldn't start filming until next year, but he got the call from Moffat just weeks after filming Series 6. A mini series called, "Night and the Doctor," was to be filmed, and of course... Matt had to film with Alex.

He hadn't seen her nor spoken to her since she suggested being friends with benefits, but she was all he could think about. He also managed to piss off Karen by not telling her about Daisy. Kaz returned from a two-week trip to Paris to find out via press, not receiving a single call or text from her supposed best friend. Filming with her was not going to be pleasant either.

"Matt, set call!" he was reminded by a crew member when she banged on his trailer door. He sighed, opening the door and heading to set.

The first person he saw was Karen, who avoided his gaze immediately. They were both asked instantly by several people if everything was alright, to which they replied, "Fine."

The first take was awful. Neither of them could remember their lines and their chemistry was completely off. Matt sighed, realizing the last person he wanted to be upset with him was Karen. He walked up to her after the first take, saying her name softly. She still refused to look at him, knowing full well he was there. She pulled a cigarette from its pack, knowing full well he couldn't stand to be around when she did that. "Kaz," he said more fondly, grabbing her wrist and pulling it down gently.

She finally looked at him, eyes like daggers. "Only my best friend gets to call me that!" she shot.

"I am your best friend," he pleaded, inhaling heavily.

"Really? Because best friends normally talk to each other often. Best friends normally check up on someone when they go off on an exciting trip. Best friends normally go to each other if someone breaks up with their girlfriend. A girl shouldn't come back from her trip that her 'best friend' didn't even ask about, only to find out that he never bothered to tell her that he broke up with his girlfriend!"

She was in front of the whole crew, not bothering to keep her volume low. They received stares, and Matt tried to quiet her by gesturing with his hand. "Shh," he told her quietly, looking at her with those puppy eyes. "Kaz, please, this isn't really the time or place for me to give you an apology but if you let me, I promise I'll make it up to you later."

"Matt," Moffat walked up to them, giving them both awkward glances. "I don't mean to interrupt, but would you two just like to call it a day and come back tomorrow?"

"Just make the mini series between him and Alex. Leave me out of it," said Karen angrily. Matt had to hold back a scoff. As if filming with Alex would be any better. "In fact, just scratch me out of series 7!" her shocking words caused the crowd to gasp, and she stormed off set.

"Karen!" Moffat called after her, cursing under his breath. He looked back to Matt, chewing on his cheek in obvious displeasure.

"Smith, I don't understand this situation a bit but you need to fix it," the Moff scorned, clearly not willing to let go of Karen Gillan just yet.

"One second," Matt sighed in defeat, running after Karen. She had reached the parking lot before he finally got her to stop. He jumped in front of her car door, sprawling his arms out to stop her from entering. "Let me take you out to dinner!"

"Whot?!" Karen raised her eyebrows, staring at him in blatant shock.

"I want to apologize and tell you why. I want to tell you why I was a complete ass and forgot that there was more than one person on this planet."

"A dinner isn't going to buy my forgiveness. But at least you can admit that you're not the only person on the planet. You weren't like this, Matt. What was it? The Doctor Who fame? So what, you're on top of the world now and all of the sudden you're the only person in the world that's worth a shit?"

"I wasn't talking about me," he spoke softly, looking down.

Karen seemed a little taken aback by the heartbreak written on his features. "Daisy?" she finally asked, showing a little compassion.

He scoffed and rolled his eyes. "This is why we need to talk. No, not Daisy. I have a lot to tell you. Dinner?"

She chewed on her bottom lip and nodded. "Dinner," she agreed. She then pushed him away from her car and pointed a threatening finger in his face. "Five o' clock and DON'T MAKE ME WAIT!"

He smiled with relief. "I'll be early for you just this once, Kazza," he told her, and she finally smiled in return.

"Ha! Okay. And by early you mean thirty minutes PASSED five? That'd be early for you!" she got in her car, closing the door before she could receive his reply.

He laughed softly, and realized it was the first time he had done so since seeing Alex a couple of weeks ago.

* * *

It was a little yellow dress that screamed summer, tucked at her small waist and flaring at the bum to make her hips wider than they really were. The straight-cut strapless hem flattered her petite front, and she allowed her wild red hair to flow over her pale shoulders.

"You look stunning," Matt told her with a friendly smile, now adorning his 'hipster cross-dresser' clothes as Alex would call them; thinning blue-jeans and a black guns-n-roses tee, complete with his favorite leather jacket and dress boots.

Karen blushed a bit, walking past him and over to the passenger's door which he kindly opened for her. "Thank you. But you're still not off the hook!"

He merely grinned at her. He was so off the hook.

"So, you said you had a lot to tell me," Karen broke the classic car silence.

"Patience, Kaz," he told her with a slight smile.

"Well, at least put some music on then," she leaned back in her chair, propping her feet on the dash board and showing off her thin, pale legs.

He obliged, flipping the radio on. They sang along to the music like dorks, laughing at each other fondly.

Matt opened doors and pulled her chair when they reached the restaurant, and after eating their food there was a long silence.

He looked up at her anticipating face, sighing heavily. "Me and Daisy haven't been happy together for a long while. I don't know why I lied to myself and faked it for so long."

"So it just ended because you didn't want to be with her?" Karen asked, sipping her wine.

"Not exactly..."

Realization dawned on her that there must be someone else. "Earlier, when you said you weren't talking about yourself..."

She saw him hold his breath, and he released it with his hands running through his hair. Never a good sign for him. "There's... been someone. For a while now..."

"You cheated on Daisy?!"

"All I did with her while I was with Daisy was kiss her and it was all I did, nothing else...and I broke up with Daisy the day it happened. But, yes, I guess that is sort of cheating. I kind of justified it because..." he paused, hesitant to say it.

"Because...?" Karen pryed, her eyes wide.

"Because I kiss her on set all the time..."

Karen had to blink for a bit, her eyes widening like golf balls. Her head seemed to spin from under that mess of red hair, and her lips parted in disbelief. "A-Alex? Alex is the someone?!"

Matt nodded and Karen gasped, flinging her arms out and sending her wine flying across the floor. She jumped, looking down and apologizing to the waiter as he cleaned it up.

"How long?" Karen asked once she regained her composure, tucking her arms at her sides so that she couldn't break anything else.

"Since the day I met her, honestly. And I think, if possible, before then," he remembered watching the movie. It wasn't love at first sight or anything, he wasn't even sure if it was love now. But it sure felt a hell of a lot different than anything else he'd ever felt in twenty-nine years.

Karen gulped. "So, what happened?"

"She doesn't feel the same way," Matt's eyes darkened, making Karen realize even further that he was completely serious about this. "I don't want to say the rest here. If you want, we can go back to your place and watch a stupid movie. Talk about it more, if you like. I hate to be so pathetically frank, but I really don't want to be alone tonight."

"You have to film with her tomorrow. When did you see her last?"

"A couple of weeks ago," he scratched the back of his head, paying the bill.

They left the restaurant, and in the car he explained how that was why he was too distressed to talk to Karen when she was in Paris. Not to take it personally because even his sister found out from the news. He had sank into a deep depression and started pushing away everyone he cared about. Her anger had faded, and she understood.

"So are we still not best friends?" Matt asked after he had pulled into her drive way and opened the car door for her.

"Oh, come here you idiot," she pulled him into a hug, and he smiled widely. At least he had his best friend back.

* * *

It was ironic how similar Alex's and Matt's situations were. Karen was mad at Matt, and Salome was mad at her mother.

Normally the girl was understanding to Alex's actions, but not this. It was the young girl's first night home from Germany, and as if she hadn't had enough of her father telling her she couldn't talk to Matty, now her mother was forbading it too.

_'This isn't a movie, Salome! I am not some young, pretty princess in a fairy tale. Matt and I AREN'T going to happen and if you bring it up again, you're grounded! I'm not having this argument with a child who has stupid fantasies in her head! '_ the words stung in Alex's memory, the heartbreak on her child's face still fresh in her mind even though hours had passed. Salome had ran to her room, tears in her eyes, refusing to speak to her mom after those harsh words. Alex never lashed out at her daughter, even during her worst times with Florian. So why was she so distraught over some boy?

The next day, she recieved a phone call from Moffat. "Hey, Alex, I know we're supposed to have you on set tomorrow but there's been a delay."

"Is everything alright?" Alex asked, a little relieved that she wouldn't have to see Matt tomorrow.

"Matt and Karen had it out on set today and I sent them home," he said, and Alex's eyes widened. "Karen even threatened to quit the show."

"Oh my God," was all Alex could say, her brain teeming with assumptions. To quiet them, she felt the need to ask, "What happened between them?"

"It's not my place to say," Moffat told her honestly. "You and Matt seem pretty close. Why don't you ask him yourself?"

Alex gulped. Whatever happened between Matt and Karen could not possibly be worse than what occurred between she and Matt. "I may. So, when do you expect me back?"

"I'll let you know tomorrow. You have a great day, Alex."

"You too, Steven," Alex replied, looking at her phone with a slight frown. Maybe she should call Matt. She sighed, not having the courage to.

Salome passed her, not saying a word to her mother. She slammed the cabinet open, attempting to crawl onto the counter top to reach the bred.

"If you're hungry, you can ask me to make you a sandwhich," Alex informed her of what she already knew. Salome ignored her, slipping and nearly falling down. Alex rushed and grabbed her, but Salome slapped her hands away.

"I can make a sandwhich myself!" the young girl snapped, taking the bread and placing it on the table.

Alex sighed, handing her a plate regardless. Salome scowled, but accepted it.

"I know I hurt your feelings, and I'm sorry...but please...Salome...sweetie..."

Salome ignored her yet again, grabbing cheese and turkey from the fridge and making her own sandwhich.

Tears welled in Alex's eyes and she walked into the living room, picking up her lines for Night and the Doctor and trying to push her troubles out of her mind.

* * *

"I think I love her," Matt said drunkenly as he spooned a wad of ice cream into his mouth.

Karen turned away from the movie they were watching, shock on her features. "Really? Not just saying that because you're drunk?"

"I'm always drunk on her, Kaz... I mean at this point I don't know if I ever knew what love is. The way I feel when I'm with Alex is so different than how I've felt with Daisy or the other girls."

"You're such a cheeseball!" Karen laughed at him, stealing the ice cream away. "But with that stupid look on your face, you really do look like you're in love with her."

"Stupid look?"

"Eh you're right, you always look like that!" she laughed at him and he frowned. "Seriously, though...I mean, I would just go for the friends with benefits thing. It's better than nothing, and maybe she'll eventually fall for you."

"You think so?"

"Well then again it is YOU," Karen laughed at him.

His face fell. "Thanks for the ego boost, Kazza," he grumbled.

"You have to look at it from her point of view, though. I mean, she is almost fifty. Don't get me wrong, Alex is gorgeous, I hope I look that fantastic when I'm her age. She's worried you'll cheat, you'll lust after younger women. Not to mention what everyone would say! God, she'd be hounded by the media and the public!"

"But you don't think it's wrong, do you?" asked Matt with a worried expression.

"You and Alex in general or the friends with benefits thing?"

"Both."

Karen propped her legs over Matt's lap, shaking her head. "Not really," she yawned, her eyes fluttering shut.

"Tired already, Kaz?"

"I've been up for a while," she defended.

"Me too," Matt added. Longer than he would admit. He felt tired, as well, and through his drunken state he really couldn't pinpoint when he fell asleep.

* * *

He was awoken with a start, however, to Karen's phone going off. He woke up with her legs still over his body all awkwardly, her feet near his face. He scowled and she began to move, reaching for her phone and answering it. "Hello?" she asked groggily.

"Good morning, mummy!" came the cheerful voice from the other line.

"Alex?" Karen asked.

Matt shot straight up, falling over the coffee table and toppling it over on top of him.

Karen burst into laughter. "Well someone's awake!" she called to Matt.

"Is everything alright?" Alex asked after hearing the loud bangs over the phone.

"Oh, yeah. Matt just woke up."

Alex's eyes widened and her chest tightened. Her fingers squeezed her phone until her knuckles were white. "Oh. Well then, I'll just... let you two go...then..."

"No, no, it's not what you think!" Karen cried as Matt struggled to get to his feet, putting the coffee table back in place. He stared at Karen with bulging eyes.

"No, it's alright. It's none of my business," Alex insisted.

"ALEX! You listen to me or your grounded!" Karen threatened, walking to her bedroom. Matt followed her. "Matt just fell asleep over at my house last night. Nothing happened."

"Like I said, it's none of my business."

"Will you get out? You're not going to listen to our conversation and you're sure as bloody hell not watching me get un-dressed!" Karen told Matt, who's eyes were still fixed on the phone. Kaz walked over to the door, shutting him out. She turned to the phone, beginning to undress. "Sorry about that. Anyway, what's with the call?"

"I...heard about your fight with...with Matt yesterday. I just wanted to make sure everything's alright, but apparantly it is."

"Yeah, the stupid bloke pissed me off. But he made it up to me so we are fine now. Maybe you should talk to him," Karen suggested, putting on a Snow White tee and cotton shorts.

"Well, you are about to head to set. I'll leave you both alone."

"I'm sure he'd love to hear from you!" Karen tried again.

"Tell him I'll just see him on set tomorrow. You two have a nice day," Alex hung up the phone, her head spinning. She believed Karen when she said nothing happened between she and Matt. Not that she should care, but she did.

Karen came out of her room, fully dressed, only to see Matt still standing in the door way with his messy bed-head and wide eyes.

"What did she say?" he asked nervously.

"Just wanted to know if we were okay. Said she'll talk to you when she sees you on set tomorrow."

His face fell.

"Well she doesn't seem angry at you. Keep your head up, loser. She'll come around," Karen comforted him, patting his shoulder lightly. "We might as well car pool to set, ay?"

Matt nodded, following behind her. "I'll drive," he told her. It was the last thing he said the whole ride to set.

* * *

Between worrying over Matt and dealing with her daughter's silent treatment, Alex was barely able to function. She went on a shopping spree, mostly buying older lady clothes because she got the notion that she needed to dress more her age. Of course, a shopping spree for her meant stopping every ten minutes for an autograph or picture. She got home late. Nicola had made dinner, but Salome was quiet throughout it. She seemed a little less angry at her mother, however, her face ridden with guilt as she occasionally gazed upon the pain that her mother didn't bother to hide.

It was far past Salome's bed time when the little girl came scuttling into the living room. Her mom was puffy-eyed and tear-stained, laying on the couch hugging her knees. She twitched slightly, her face lifting to look at her daughter.

"Can I at least come to set with you tomorrow?" she sniffled, holding her pillow tight.

Alex sighed, nodding softly. "Yes, dear. But you'll need some rest if you're to be up as early as I am," she got up, pulling her daughter into a warm embrace and kissing her forehead tenderly. Alex shook violently, trying to contain herself. "Salome, baby, I'm sorry...I'm so sorry I yelled at you. Mummy never meant to hurt you. Mummy's just... mummy's hurting s-so ba-ad," she began to sob hopelessly onto her daughter's shoulder. Salome crawled into her lap, wrapping her tiny arms around her mother.

"It's okay, mommy. I'm sorry for being a brat. I love you."

She sobbed even harder, shaking her head and holding her daughter tightly. "You're not a brat. You are the most beautiful, precious thing in this entire world and I love you more than anyone or anything."

"Come to bed, mom. You need some sleep, too."

She nodded, hoisting her girl into her arms and biting her lip in attempt to hold her sobs. She set Salome down on the king-sized bed, crawling in next to her and turning the lamp off. "Good night, sweetie."

"Good night...and mommy?"

"Yes?"

"I just want you to be happy."

"I know," Alex whispered into her daughter's brunette curls, tears still escaping her eyes as she held her baby girl. At least she had her princess back.


	17. First Night, Last Night, Fantastic Night

**It feels as if it's been FOREVER since I updated! Interesting, though, because I got the inspiration to post this from 1.) I heard Salome's voice for the first time today! She is SO precious! I fangirled. 2.) I SAW A GIF OF MATT AND SALOME TOGETHER AND MY FEELS HIT THE ROOF ! Anyway, I hope you enjoy the more light-hearted chapters. I enjoy writing them!**

* * *

Matt's heart stopped when he heard the delicate knock on his door the following morning. He knew that Alex was here and that Karen wasn't on set this day, so it had to be Alex. He drew in a deep breath, opening the door. His eyes widened and his jaw fell into a flabbergasted smile. "Salome!" he cried in surprise, jumping from his trailer and plucking her from the ground. He spun her around in circles, laughing happily.

"Matty!" she squealed in reply, throwing her arms around his neck and holding on with all her strength.

"Oh, poppet, I've missed you so much!" he pressed kisses repeatedly on the top of her head, pealing back and beaming at her precious face.

"I missed you, too!" she beamed as he finally set her down. "Tell me we can do something after you finish filming?! Pleeeeaaase?!"

"How can I say no to that face?" he told her, setting her down and pinching her cheeks lovingly. "And I don't have to be on set right this moment!"

She shot him a grin, diving into his trailer and shuffling around. He cocked a brow, but his grin could not be wider when she retrieved his football. She threw it in the air and butted it with her head. Matt bent down, catching it with the back of his neck. Salome squealed and clapped her hands with delight. Matt then rolled the ball off onto the ground and began dribbling it. "Catch!" he called, kicking it west. Salome jumped from the trailer stairs, chasing after the football and catching it under the ball of her foot. She kicked it back to him, and he caught it. "Good! Now try to steal it!" he took off, running in circles around her with that ball. She desperately tried to steal the ball, Matt giving her tips along the way. They laughed greatly, until they heard a familiar voice within close range.

Alex smiled lightly when she saw Matt playing with her daughter, fresh out of hair and makeup Seeing Matt caused her feelings to surface on her face. It was a mixture of longing and emptiness, complete with a smile that was just simply... sad. "Salome," she called to her daughter.

Matt and Salome stopped in their tracks, Matt looking at Alex with wide eyes. She looked completely gorgeous in her prison grunge outfit, her hair perfectly curled and her tan skin glimmering under the sun's kiss. He gaped a bit, finally managing to say, "Hello."

"Good morning, Matt," she told him, and Salome tried not to smile at the fact she was adressing him in such a nice way. "We have a set call."

"That we do. Wanna come watch us film, princess?" Matt peeled his eyes from the gorgeous woman to look down at her pretty daughter. Salome nodded vigorously, grabbing both of their hands and walking to the set like old times.

Alex and Matt exchanged bittersweet glances, pulses racing.

Sometimes Alex forgot what an amazing actor Matt was, but she was quickly reminded by his glorious display as the Doctor. She slid into her role with ease, becoming the fiesty and flirty River Song. They fed off of one another, their chemistry fueling the room.

He was slightly nervous though, in the way he was fumbling through his words rapidly. "You could read a book by it," he finished his fast-paced description of the first planet the Doctor was taking River Song to. Of course, his nervosity fit easily into the role and they only had to film a couple of takes.

Those sexual innuendos killed him, though. He had read them in his head, but it was so different when she actually said them.

"We have ten minutes, get dressed."

"Oh, that's so close to the perfect sentence," Alex replied as River, and Matt crumbled, his face becoming red as mental images passed.

"Matt, earth to Matt!" the director called, and Matt laughed.

"Yeah, sorry, um..." he looked up at Alex, who was blushing as well.

"It's okay, darling," she touched his arm playfully, and he inhaled sharply.

They filmed another take, getting it right and moving on. Alex then left for a change of costume, returning minutes later in her Day of the Moon outfit.

"Oh, I knew you'd come back here! You nostalgic idiot!" Alex cried, pretending to pass out in Matt's arms, and he just admired how beautiful she was. He examined her as the Doctor, leaning so close that he had to refrain from actually kissing her.

Fire lit inside her as she felt him so very near to her; the sexual tension could be cut with a knife. She had to act like she was holding her breath, but honestly she felt like she couldn't breathe if she tried.

When that was over, they filmed the last take of her in that costume.

"Doctor, can't you give me a lift? You know what this thing does to my hair!"

He looked up, holding in his smirk. "It's always like that," he told her, and the scene cut. "I love your hair, though," he complimented and she beamed at him before going in for her third costume change.

Oh God Steven was trying to kill him.

She came into the console room with her Darillium dress hugging all the right curves, showing off her toned arms and dipping low enough to light a fire within Matt's body.

"Hu...uhhh...yowzah.." he said in front of everyone, staring at her up and down. She looked incredible, and he didn't bother hiding that he thought so.

She blushed underneath his glimpse, taking his chin and making his eyes level with her own. "Eyes front, soldier," she then dropped her hand, adjusting his bow tie as River often would.

"Kind of hard to look away," he replied, biting his lip.

She raised her eyebrows, looking around and noting the several stares they were receiving. The crew was accustomed to their flirting, but this was different. Matt wasn't smiling or flailing his arms around her in a flirtacious way. He was completely still, staring at her with complete seriousness. "Save the flirtation for the camera, darling," Alex broke the silence, ready to film.

"Not a chance," he whispered in her ear, making her jump. Chills rushed over her body and the heat grew in between her legs. Damn him.

This time, it was Matt's turn for a costume change and he came back looking rather fetching in a top hat. He acted against himself, which was truely brilliant, and after just a few hours the minisode was complete.

"So that...this...this is Darillium?" Matt asked Steven, gesturing to he and Alex in their costumes.

"Yep," Steven replied. "Last day that River sees her Doctor."

"So we're not going to film the actual goodbye scene between them?" asked Alex in a disappointed tone.

Steven smirked slightly. "Spoilers," he told them, looking in between the two. "Don't worry, Alex. We haven't seen the last of River. You'll be in series 7 next year. You two keep up the fantastic chemistry," he gave them a knowing look before exiting the TARDIS console room.

Alex and Matt raised their eyebrows, looking at one another. "Do you think he knows?" Alex asked as if she were worried.

"The man's a proper genius; wouldn't put it past him," Matt scratched his head, examining her in that dress and allowing his lips to part in his thirst for her. They were completely alone, and the sexual tension only amplified. She allowed his gaze to roam over her, and he took in every detail of her form. He admired the way the console room lighting flickered over her sun-kissed skin, the perfectly untamed beauty of her curls, the lines on the corners of her mouth, the defined collar bones, and the plump mounds of her breasts. Blush crept on her cheeks and she smiled a bit, enjoying the way he looked at her.

"You...look...gorgeous..." he finally whispered, his hands reaching for her hips.

She didn't even get a chance to thank him before she felt his mouth pressed against hers. She moaned in surprise, her arms flying into the air with her sudden shock. She relaxed her body, her arms wrapping around his neck. He pushed her against the console room door, and she heard him lock it before his hands returned to her. His top hat fell over as he kissed her fervently, moaning and biting and gasping against her mouth. She kissed him back with equal hunger, fingers curling into his hair and pushing his face even further into hers. He quickly became hard, and didn't bother to hide it, grinding himself against her

"Matt!" she cried, feeling fluid join the heat that had been simmering between her thighs. As soon as she broke the kiss, his mouth was pressing sloppy kisses against her neck. His palms travelled across her ribs, finding the back of her Darillium dress and prying it from it's hold on her. He began to slide the dress down from her shoulders when she grabbed his wrists. "Matt, we can't! We're in here," she looked around the set of the console room, gulping a bit.

"I don't care," he reached for her breasts, his thumbs grazing over her hard nipples and making her shriek. He put his mouth on hers, his tongue swiping over her quivering bottom lip. "I can't take it anymore," he growled. "I need you. I need to be inside you, Alex."

She pulled from him once more, biting her lip. She shook her head, trying to fight the arousal by closing her eyes. "But Salome.."

"I'm sure Rachel will be fine looking after her for ten more minutes," he reasoned with her, nibbling on her ear lobe and causing her knees to buckle momentarily.

"I hate you," she kissed him, tugging off his jacket and beginning to unbutton his shirt.

"No you don't," he grinned as she stepped out of her dress, kicking it to the side. He picked her up, setting her on the console of the TARDIS and flourishing her body with kisses. She moaned softly, throwing her head back as he slid his fingers into her. He kissed every inch, his mouth lingering an extra amount of time over the mounds of her breasts. "You're so beautiful," he whispered into her ear, pulling his fingers out of her to tug off his pants.

She shrieked as he slid into her, and he grabbed her hips to steady him as he thrusted through her hot, wet core. She repeated his names in different pitches, occasionally muffling out the sound by biting his shoulder.

Perhaps saying that Rachel would be fine watching Salome for ten minutes was an overstatement, because he barely lasted five. He finished with a series of ridiculous facial expressions and gasps. Alex took notice, bucking her hips as he lost movement in his legs. She grabbed his head, pulling him into her chest so that his mouth was over one of her breasts. He nipped at it feverishly, rubbing his lips over her and mumbling to her. "Come for me, Alex. Please, baby, I need you to..."

She obliged, not that it was voluntary. She quieted herself by grabbing his face and moaning into his mouth. They continued to kiss for several seconds before he broke it, panting over her. She smiled, stroking his face lovingly. He returned the smile, pulling up his pants and walking backwards to the door so he didn't take his eyes off of her.

She followed him, swaying her hips and patting her wild hair with her hands. "So does this mean you've changed your mind?" she asked, pulling on her dress and keeping her eyes on his.

"Maybe. Have you changed yours?" he asked, not really serious. He hadn't expected her to change her mind about being his girlfriend, he just threw it out there for the hell of it.

She sighed heavily, helping him button his shirt. "If we're going to do this, we need rules."

His eyes widened and he broke into the happiest smile she had ever seen. He picked her up, spinning around and kissing her multiple times.

She laughed at him, kicking her legs out until he set her down. "I don't think I've ever seen anyone so happy about having rules!"

"Oh, Kingston, you know damn well the rules aren't what I'm happy about!" he threw on his jacket as she fixed his bow tie because he ironically had no idea how to tie one. "So, rules?"

"We'll talk about it later. Daughter, remember?" she cocked a brow and smirked at him, opening the doors.

"Oh! Yes, right! I kind of told Salome that we could spend time together after filming," he scratched his cheek nervously, raising his brows at her.

She smiled. "That's fine. She hasn't seen you in almost half a year, so she misses you. Am I allowed to come along?"

He pulled her waist in, pressing a kiss to the top of her curls. "Of course you are!"

She reacted unexpectedly, pulling away until she was several feet from him. She checked to make sure no one had seen, and they hadn't. "None of that. Like I said, rules."

He frowned. "You haven't told me the rules yet, so how should I know?"

God he looked so adorable. She sighed, patting his arm. "Just no public displays of affection for now, okay?"

He nodded, remaining quiet for a few seconds before he spotted Salome sitting next to Rachel and Steven.

"You're very good. What are you drawing?" Steven asked, having not seen Salome's work.

"The Doctor and River," she replied, not looking up from her intense coloring.

"I can see that. I should ask where are you drawing them?"

"Well I was watching the library episode the other day and I noticed that River tells the Doctor that they had a picnic on Asgard. That's Thor's planet, right? Did you mean to do that?"

Steven laughed. "Clever girl. Yes, yes I did."

"So Thor met the Doctor?"

"I may have a head canon of it, yes," Steven winked at her.

"What's a head canon?" Salome asked, raising her eyebrows and scrunching up her face.

"It's like when something happens in your head but you mostly keep it to yourself so no one really knows about it. But it's real and legitimate."

"Oh," Salome looked down at her picture of River and the Doctor, and in all reality it looked more like Alex and Matt. "I have a head canon..."

"Really? With what?" Steven asked.

Before the little girl could answer, Rachel piped in. "Have a nice talk?!" she called to the pair approaching the lunch table.

Matt and Alex paused, receiving a smug smirk from Steven. Oh, he so knew. If their demeanors hadn't given it away earlier, then their disheveled hair and slightly damp skin certainly did. "Um, yes. Yes we did," Matt answered, chuckling softly.

"Did you tell mommy about us hanging out tonight?" Salome asked.

"Yes, he did," Alex looked at her, putting her hands on her hips. "Would've been nice to hear it from you, first, young lady."

Salome winced. "Sorrrryyyy!"

"It's okay, sweetie. I'll be joining you for whatever it is we're doing."

Steven and Rachel looked at one another, raising their eyebrows.

"REALLY?!" Salome cried, jumping out of her seat and grabbing her mother's hands.

"Yes," Alex answered with a wide smile, and her daughter began jumping up and down with delight. "So what is it that we'll be doing?" she asked Matt.

"C'mon, I'll give you a ride and we can talk about it on the way back to my place," Matt offered.

"Alright. Thank you for staying with her, Rachel," Alex thanked the woman kindly. These days she was more like a nanny than a crew member.

"You're welcome. You have fun!" she replied with a smirk.

Alex and Matt retired to their trailers, switching into normal clothes.

As they were out of ear shot, Rachel turned to Steven. "Are they...?"

"I believe they are," Steven replied, chuckling softly. "Who would've thought?"

"Salome got so excited about spending time with them both that she left her drawing," the woman picked up the piece of paper, examining it with a small smirk. "I think I know what her head canon is."

-x-

Matt raised a brow at the frumpy clothes that were so very un-Alex-y.

"What?" she asked under his gaze, but he shook his head.

"Nothing. Well, to the car then!"

They discussed places they should go, and Alex decided no where public. He had a feeling he knew the direction these 'rules' were going.

They decided on a casual dinner at Matt's. Matthew apparantly had some old board games, and it had been ages since Alex had played anything of the sort. It sounded perfect.

"Alright! Water on boil! Got my pasta noodles, marinated chicken, alfredo sauce, and the asparagus what am I forgetting..." Matt rummaged around the kitchen with Alex standing across from him, smiling and shaking her head.

"Spices?" she suggested, opening the spice cabinet.

"Ah! Yes! Spices, thank you Alex!" he beamed at her, rubbing his hands together and taking them from the cabinet.

"You're ridiculous," she told him, washing her hands.

"You love it," he winked at her, putting on an apron and starting on the noodles. "If you're going to help, you can get the chicken."

She clucked like a chicken and he burst into laughter. "Oh, and I'M the ridiculous one!" he bumped hips with her and she bumped him back, laughing wildly with him.

"What's so funny?" Salome had paused her movie and walked into the kitchen.

They both turned around, smiling at the little girl. "Oh, nothing, sweetie," Alex waved it off. "Matthew is just being silly as usual."

Matt scoffed, bopping Alex on the nose. "You're just as silly as I am, Kingston!'

Salome bit her lip and grinned, happy to see them so happy together. "Nah, Matty, I think you're a bit more silly!"

Alex put her hand over her heart, appearing hurt. "I could out-silly him if I wanted to!"

"Oh can you now, Kingston?" he cocked a brow and smirked at her. "Prove it."

Alex sucked in her cheek, rotating the chicken and then starting on the asparagus. "Don't make me use my River Song on you, sweetie," she warned him with a tight smirk.

Matt laughed, putting his hands on his hips. "Don't forget who plays River's husband, dear."

"Uh-oh!" Salome giggled, before running back to her movie.

"Oh, I could never forget that," Alex rubbed her lips together. When she heard the movie turn back on, she dropped her voice so that Salome couldn't hear. "Doctor, can you sonic me?"

Matt paused, his nerves sizzling in his abdomen. He leaned over, kissing her firmly. He pulled from her quickly, but just barely, his tongue ghosting over her bottom lip. "Maybe later," he whispered against her mouth.

She bit her lip, seduction flaring in her eyes. She blushed a bit, before returning to dinner. "Looking forward to it."

Matt realized he should probably shut up before he ended up getting carried away, so he finished making dinner in silence, giving Alex occasional glances and smiles that she returned.

"Salome! Dinner's ready!" Alex called to her daughter as she set the table. The little girl skipped into the dining room, beaming at the table full of food.

"It looks delicious!" she sniffed the air. She reached to grab her chair, but Matt jumped in front of her and pulled it for her.

"Nah, ah, ah. Princesses don't pull their own chairs," Matt waved a playful finger at her, smiling. "And I'm being completely serious. When all those peasant boys start going after you, you better beat all the ones off that don't open doors and pull your chairs and treat you like the princess you are."

Alex was simply glowing, staring at him in awe.

Salome smiled, sitting in her chair. "Okay, Matty. I promise I'll find a prince just like you!""

"But don't be looking for a prince anytime soon, though," Matt warned, pulling Alex's chair for her before settling in his own.

Salome looked down, as if she was guilty, but she didn't say anything. Alex smiled throughout the whole dinner. Matt was so amazing with her daughter. He always had been, and she loved it. She could get used to this.

"You're a great cook, Matt," Alex said after she finished her dinner, and he took her plate to the sink.

"Only because you helped," he told her with a smile.

"Well it was great. So now what?!" Salome asked.

"Go pick out a game while I get the dishes," Matt told her, giving her directions to the board game storage. She hopped off to do exactly so.

"You're incredible. With Salome, I mean," Alex walked up next to him, wrapping her arms around him and kissing his shoulder.

He smiled more brightly than ever, kissing the top of her curls. "I don't know if you've noticed, Alex, but I sort of love your daughter," he spoke softly, his smile faltering only for a milisecond. He wished he could tell Alex that he sort of loved her, too. Now wasn't the time or place for that, and it would probably just scare her away. That was the last thing he wanted.

"Yes, I see," she nodded, helping him with the dishes.

They walked back to the kitchen together, and noticed that Salome had set out Doctor Who Monopoly. Matt laughed heartily. "Should have known!" he said, sitting down beside her.

Alex chuckled as she sat, looking at Matt. "I didn't even know they had this sort of thing! But, if they did, it makes sense that you of all people would have it!"

"Interesting thing, I've only played it once since I got it and that was with Karen and Arthur. Karen lost."

"So did you," Alex assumed.

Matt's lips parted in slight surprise. "What? I didn't say that! Why would you say that?!"

"Because Arthur must have won," Alex smiled.

Matt gasped. "Uh...well I never! You just ASSUME I lost for whatever reason!"

Alex raised her eyebrows. "So you won?"

Matt huffed, wrinkling his nose in defeat. "No, Darvill did."

Alex laughed. "I knew it!'

"Oh, shut it I call the sonic!" he grabbed the sonic screwdriver token.

"I guess I"ll get the gun...that is a gun, right?" Alex held up the piece, giving it a closer look.

"Kinda looks like a boomerang," Salome commented, tilting her head.

Matt and Alex laughed. "It really does!" Matt agreed.

"I guess I'll get the bow tie... bow ties are cool!" Salome commented, elicting another round of laughter from the two adults beside her.

The trio played for hours. Monopoly was a long game, but they had quite a bit of fun. Of course, Matt spent so much time admiring Alex that he hardly had the room in his mind to play well. So, he lost. Alex also played half-heartedly, and Salome ended up winning.

"Victoryyyy!" the little girl cried with a yawn.

"Tired, sweetie?" Alex asked, yawning right after her.

"I think you both are," Matt commented.

"We didn't have much sleep," Alex informed him.

"Ah. Better put you both to bed, huh?"

Alex opened her mouth to protest, but was interrupted by another yawn.

"It's alright, Kingston. I've got a spare room for Salome," he said, standing up. "C'mon, princess, I'll tuck you in," he held out his arms and Salome gladly walked into him. He plucked her from the ground and carried her to the back room, setting her down on the bed.

"I had a lot of fun tonight, Matty," Salome told him.

"So did I. Sweet dreams, love," he bent down and kissed her forehead.

"Goodnight," the girl said before dozing off.

Matt returned to the living room, seeing Alex laying next to the Monopoly board with her eyes closed. He smiled at her. She looked so beautiful just laying there. "Haven't passed out on me already, Kingston?"

She smiled, keeping her eyes closed. "No, not yet."

"Do I need to carry you to bed, too?" he asked, putting the board game up.

"If you like," she raised her eyebrows. She didn't really expect him to hoist her up bridal style, though. She shrieked with surprise but fell limp in his arms, cuddling close to his chest with a smile. He carried her to his room and set her on the bed, kissing her gently. She moaned into his mouth, brushing the sides of his face with her hands. He lifted himself only to go turn out the light, before crawling in bed next to her.

"Are we still going to talk about rules?" he asked, enveloping her in his arms and propping his chin on the top of her head. He felt her nod.

"Rule one...we can't tell anyone," she began.

Matt winced. "Well, Karen knows."

"Fair enough. Nicola knows, and apparantly so does Steven and probably Rachel, too. I suspect Salome will know soon, if she doesn't already," Alex reasoned. "But other than that, we have to keep this a secret. Which brings me to rule two. No public displays of affection. Only when we're alone."

"Kind of figured that," he sighed.

"Are you okay with that?" she asked before she continued any further.

He nodded. "I understand. This isn't exactly normal. If we went public with this, then you'd probably be hounded by the media and criticized because of our age difference. I don't want you to have to go through that."

"Plus I don't know how this is going to go. I...I've been hurt, Matt. Very deeply. Going into a relationship scares me...the way I feel about you scares me..."

He grabbed her hands, pulling them to her face and kissing them. "To be honest, the way I feel about you terrifies me, too," he smiled. "But being without you scares me more."

She smiled, butterflies fluttering in her stomach. "Rule three...I'll return to America in the fall, so our relationship will be long, long-distance. Different time zones. We need set times to contact one another. You can Skype me on your nights which will be my mornings, and call me in the mornings which will be my nights. If you want, anyway."

"Of course...I can text you all day though, right?" he asked, tightening his hold on her.

"Yes, darling," she smiled, nuzzling her face into his neck. "Rule four...if there's ever a point where either of us feels that this isn't working out...then we'll just say it. No beating around the bush or ignoring one another or putting it off like you did with Daisy."

He frowned, the comment hurting him slightly. "Agreed."

She took a deep sigh. "Last one...rule five...if you ever feel...if you ever feel strong enough affection towards me that you want to use a certain three words...then don't."

His heart dropped to his stomach. He was glad it was too dark for her to see his facial expression, but his silence said it all.

"Like I said, I've been hurt before and this is very scary for me. We need to take this slow. At least on an emotional level, because I'm pretty sure we've done everything on a physical level."

He grinned. "Well, you haven't gone down on me yet."

"Hmmm...I'll make sure to fix that soon," she nibbled at his collar bone. "But anyway, just... let me say it first, okay? Not saying that it will happen or we'll get to that point...but just let me set the pace, alright sweetie?"

He nodded. "I understand. So..now that we have established rules..I think it's about time I ask..."

"Go on."

"Alex Kingston...will you be my girlfriend?"

She grinned wide, pulling her face from his chest and kissing him briefly but tenderly. She pulled away, gazing into the starlit gleam of his eyes. "Yes."


	18. Blissful and Terrifying

**So this chapter was so fun to write! Mainly because it reminds me of the Wedding of River Song where Amy knew about the Doctor and River and Rory had no idea what was going on, just like Arthur does in this chapter. **

**And it is also fluffy. Fluffy makes my heart warm like hot fluffy pancakes in the morning.**

* * *

Alex woke to the gentle strokes

of Matt's hand against her face. She smiled, her eyes fluttering open to that ridiculous baby face and floppy hair. "Good morning," she smiled up at him.

"Morning, beautiful," he said groggily. "Sleep well?"

"Best sleep I've had in weeks," she answered, sitting up and rustling through her hair. She pecked his lips, but he pulled her in closer, kissing her more deeply. She moaned, falling into his lap and lapping her tongue slowly within his mouth. She pulled from him, setting her forehead on his and smiling happily. "I need a shower," she whispered. She felt him raise his browline against her forehead, and she flickered her eyes open to see the coy grin on his face.

"May I join you?" he asked, his thumb caressing her jawline.

"Mmmh, darling...I think that might lead to a bit of promiscuous trouble," she nuzzled her nose against his.

"What's wrong with that?" he pecked her lips.

"Salome's in the next room," she answered, pecking him once more.

"I can be quiet," he said huskily.

She chuckled softly. "Well alright. Rule six, we have to be quiet when Salome's around."

"So many rules, Kingston," he groaned, gathering her in his arms and lifting her by her bum. "Good men don't need rules."

"No, but naughty boys do. And you, Matthew, are a very naughty boy," she kissed him, passionately, wrapping her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. He carried her to the bathroom, beginning to slide the frumpy clothes from her.

"So, I've been meaning to ask," he breathed between kisses. "What's with the old-lady clothes?"

"Hmm?"

"Were you trying to ward me off by making yourself look older? Because it's not working," he kissed her neck..

"Just thought I needed to dress my age," she answered with a shudder as his hands brushed over the mounds of her breasts.

"Why bother when you can pass for being in your thirties?" he tugged off his clothes, starting the shower water.

She laughed, following him into the shower. "You give me too much credit, darling."

He looked at her naked body from the top of her curls down to her painted toenails. His barely-there-brows raised and he smirked at her, hazel eyes boring into hers. "I give credit where credit is due, Kingston," he told her, pulling her underneath the running water and kissing her eagerly. She whimpered, falling into him and letting the water soak her body. His hands roamed over the wet surface of her skin, leaving tingling nerves in their path. She loved the way he touched her, his weathered hands complimenting her silky skin. She sighed into his kiss, sweeping her tongue over his and forgetting everything but how perfect she felt in his arms. He was obviously more verbally affectionate than she; always eager to express his ardent feelings. She, however, almost never voiced the internal fire of emotion that he lit within her. She could get carried away with the smoldering feelings, and she did, but she did not allow it to continue long. That would be irresponsible.

"We're not going to get much showering done if we keep this up," she broke the kiss, her lips swollen and red like the scarlet patches on her wet cheeks.

"Can't say I'm complaining," he told her in a voice just barely above a whisper, caressing the sides of her face with his thumbs. She raised her eyebrows, an almost-scorning expression plastered on her face. That look said it all. He rolled his eyes with a light-hearted smile, grabbing his body wash. "Fine," he said defeatedly, beginning to pour himself a heap when she snatched the bottle from him.

"Don't you know how to shower with a woman?" she asked teasingly, pouring the blue substance into her hands and beginning to spread it over his milky-white skin. "You don't bathe yourself. That's not how it works!"

"Mmh, my apologies. How about you teach me, Mrs. Robinson?" he suggested, fingers brushing her hip bones.

"Perhaps. You'll have to bathe me, too, though."

"I'm afraid I only have men's body wash."

"Oh, that's quite alright. I don't mind smelling like Matt Smith for a day," she winked at him.

"Maybe you should keep your own body wash over here."

"That would imply me staying the night often," dropping to her knees and scrubbing his legs with the lofa.

"You say that at is if there's something wrong with it," he pouted, eyeing her nervously as her face lingered very close to a particular hardened body part.

She sighed, raising to her feet and pushing him gently into the water stream so he could rinse off. "Rule seven... we can't spend a lot of overnight time together... you're one of the biggest names in the UK right now, and it would draw a lot of attention if I spent the night at your house often."

Matt finished rinsing the soap of his body with a slightly sad expression. He grabbed his body wash again, beginning to bathe her. "I really don't like these rules."

"A relationship without rules is like a government without laws. Our relationship is a special case that requires special laws. It's for the best," she pecked his lips.

"Fine then. As long as I can still spend normal day time with you... I'll even invite Karen and Arthur if it'll draw less attention. Might as well, eh?"

She smiled. "Quality time with mummy and father dear. Sounds perfEEECCTTT," she gasped as he dipped his hand down low, and she stepped back in slight shock before laughing. "Sorry, sorry, you just caught me off guard!"

He laughed at her, pulling her back in and beginning to bathe her backside. "Woah, there," he pressed a light kiss to her nose before leaning his forehead against hers.

"That doesn't help," she looked down at his hard cock pressed against her.

"Can't help it," he replied, catching her lips in his.

"I can help you get rid of it," she bit her lip seductively.

Her suggestion in that particular tone of voice caused his nerves to prickle against his stomach and he smirked. "Well then," he began, giving her the head-to-toe once more. He stepped to his side, smacking her on the ass and finishing his sentence with, "Rinse off, Kingston!"

She shrieked, stepping into the shower water and laughing as she rinsed the soap suds from her body.

It was another hour before they came out of the room.

-x-

"Salome, honey, are you awake?" Alex knocked on the spare bedroom.

"Yeah!" she heard her daughter call back to her.

"Well when you get dressed, we all need to have a talk. Matt and I will be in the living room," she told her, brushing back a slightly damp curl.

"Kay," Salome replied.

Alex returned to the living room, seeing her boyfriend reclining sideways on the love-seat with a dizzy smile on his face. She bent down, pecking his lips. "Are you able to speak, yet?" she asked, since he had been unable to form sentences after their last session.

"Mmh, perfect sentences. That being said," he opened his eyes, focusing on her plump lips. "You have a very talented mouth, Kingston."

Her eyes widened before she began to giggle and blush. He made room for her to sit next to him and she did so, hiding her face in her hands.

He took her hands from her face, kissing the middle of her fists. "No need to be bashful, love. I'm sure you've heard it before."

"Not really, actually," she admitted. "Well, I've been told I'm a great kisser, but..."

"You are a f_antastic_ kisser...everywhere you decide to kiss," he winked at her, pressing a soft kiss on her cheek. She opened her mouth to reply before she heard Salome skipping down the hallway, her long brown hair flying behind her head.

"Good morning!" she greeted the two of them happily, sitting down on the couch in front of them. She folded her hands over her lap and blinked at them innocently. "Mom said we all needed to talk."

"Yes, yes we do," Matt nodded.

"Soooooooooo," Salome raised her eyebrows. "What is it?!"

"Salome," Matt began, taking Alex's hand in his own. He saw the girl begin to beam already.

"Yes?!" she cried excitedly, trying not to stare at their laced fingers.

"Your mum and I...we...um..." he looked at Alex, smiling sheepishly.

"Matty and I like each other very much," Alex continued for him with a small smile.

"Yeah, that's nothing new" Salome rolled her eyes with a giant grin on her face. Alex and Matt laughed softly.

"I...asked your mum to be my girlfriend."

"AND YOU SAID YES?!" Salome cried, looking at her mother with wide and happy eyes.

Alex nodded. "I did."

"YAY! YAY! YAY! FINALLY!" Salome jumped between them with her arms wide. The couple laughed at her again.

Matt pressed a kiss to the side of the girl's head, pulling her into his lap. "So you approve?"

"I most definitely a hundred mundred percent approve!" Salome clapped happily.

Alex leaned her head on Matt's shoulder, smiling at her daughter. "You can't tell anyone. I know all your little friends are big fans of Matt but this has to be our little secret, okay?"

"You aren't telling anyone?" Salome's smile faded. "Why not?"

"It's complicated," Alex explained, rubbing her daughter's arm.

"Adults are so silly. Are we going to tell Auntie Nicola?"

"She already knows. Sort of," Alex scratched her curls. "Speaking of Nicola, we need to head that way."

Matt frowned as Alex got up off the couch, tugging Salome off of his lap. "When will I see you again?" he asked.

"Mmh, you tell me, sweetie,"

"Tonight?"

"Too soon."

"Tomorrow night?" he put on his irresistable puppy face.

She paused, seeming to think it over. "Alright. see you tomorrow night."

He smiled, walking her to the door and wrapping his arms around her tightly. "Can't wait," he then bent down, hugging Salome as well. "And yes, princess, you're invited," he patted the top of her head and she beamed.

"Yay! See you tomorrow, Matty!"

"See you tomorrow," he kissed Salome on the forhead and Alex on the lips before sending them on their way.

-x-

So, what are you up to? x

Matt texted Alex later that afternoon.

Dying my hair

, she answered with a guilty smile he couldn't even see.

Matt's eyes widened a bit. _You must really be trying to ward off the paps._

_Just thought it'd be nice to have a change. I don't have to be River until next year and I'm a woman, sweetie, I like to change my hair._

_Mm-hm. So what color you getting? x_

_Hot pink!_

_WHAT?!_

_I'm kidding, I'm kidding! Just brunette._

_Mmh, like Moll Flanders brunette?_

_A little darker._

_Send me pics. xx_

_You're going to see me tomorrow!_

_And? I want to see your hair when it's done._

_And what if I say you can just wait?_

A couple minutes later, she recieved a picture of Matt with his ridiculous pouty face. She began to laugh, quickly saving the picture then deleting the message before her hairdresser saw. _You're so silly!_

C'mon, Kingston. What's wrong with wanting to see ooooone picture? What, you don't like taking selfies?

Taking what?

Selfies. You know. Pictures of yourself.

I don't really do that. I'm used to posing for other people.

Try it. For me? :) xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

She rolled her eyes, smiling._ Fine. I'll send you a 'selfie' when it's done. I have to go now. _

_Looking foward to it. And Alex?_

_Yes?_

_I still think you'd be beautiful with hot pink hair. x_

She smiled._ Thanks, darling. Maybe I'll try it some day. ;) Talk to you later. xxxx_

-x-

She wasn't very good at this. She would hold the camera in front of her face, snap the picture, hesitate even looking at it, and then delete it as soon as she did look at it. So this is what teenage girls spend so much time in the bathroom doing.

She finally found one that she thought was acceptable and sent it to Matt.

Matt smiled when he saw the picture of Alex, her now-brunette curls framing her smiling face. _I love it. You look _

__Alex beamed, happy to have his approval._ Thank you, sweetie. xx_

_Can't wait to see it in 't wait to see you in general. I miss you. x_

_I miss you, too, oddly enough...I saw you just a few hours ago!_

_That's too long. I've been pining for you for over a year and now I have you so I just want to be with you as much as possible. Especially since you return to the states in a few weeks_.

_By the way, when I do go back, I'm returning with Florian. He'll be in Germany til the end of summer and I'll be here til the end of summer, and when we get back to LA Salome will be staying with him so we decided to just take the same plane, if that's alright._

_...so he's going to be at the airport?_

_Yes._

_I wanted to see you off, though._

_Probably best if you don't, Matt. It'd draw too much attention. And I don't want Florian to find out about you and I just yet._

_I don't care what he thinks and you shouldn't either, but fine._

_Are you mad?_

_No, I'm just not fond of the idea of you being around him._

_We share a daughter. I'll have to be around him for the rest of my life._

_I understand that. Doesn't mean I like it._

_Well, you don't have anything to worry about._

_I'm not jealous or anything._

Sure sounds like you are.

_Not really. Do I need to be?_

_Like I said, you have nothing to worry about._

_Okay then. I'm not bovvered._

Alex burst into laughter.

"What are you over there giggling and smiling about?" Nicola asked Alex, sitting on the couch next to her sister with a bowl of popcorn. She tried to look over at Alex's phone but Alex held her arm away from her sister. "What? I can't have a look-see? You're talking to Matt, aren't you?!"

"Yes, I am," Alex admitted, scrunching her face up and smiling.

"Good. I'm glad he makes you happy," Nicola smiled, turning the television on.

Alex looked back down at her phone, still smiling faintly. He really did make her happy.

-x-

Karen and Arthur arrived first the following night. Karen nearly tackled Matt to the ground, and he laughed. "Great to see you, too, Kaz!" he cried, before letting her go and hugging Arthur. "Darvill! It's been too long!"

"Alright, enough chatter! I'm ready to swim!" Karen cried, running to the bathroom to change.

Matt smiled, rushing to the kitchen to grab the snacks and set them outside. He heard a car outside and rushed back to the front door, smiling when he saw Alex and Salome heading his way. Salome was already in her swim suit and goggles, running several feet ahead of her mom.

Matt smiled, hugging Salome then kissing her mother. "I missed you!" he told her when he pulled from the kiss. His eyes darted to the red straps hiding underneath her tee. He cocked a brow. "Is that a bikini?" he asked in a low tone.

She smirked, raising her eyebrows in an alluring manner. "Spoilers," she replied, stepping passed him. He beamed, following behind her. Karen came out of the bathroom in a yellow bikini, and Matt began chanting, "She wore an itsy bitsy teeney weeney yellow polka-dot bikini!"

Karen laughed, hitting him on the arm before squealing and hugging Alex. "You dyed your hair!" she greeted her in her thick Scottish accent.

"Yes, mummy, do you like it?" Alex hugged Karen tightly.

"I love it!" Karen ruffled Alex's curls.

"Grandmaaaaa!" Salome hugged Karen's hips.

"Well hello there little sprite!" Karen bent down, returning her hug.

"Oi, no hugs for the grandfather?!" Arthur rubbed the top of Salome's head. "Hello, Alex...love the hair." he said, and yet another hug was shared.

"Thank you, father dear," Alex smiled, happy to be around her little 'family' again.

"Mom, go change so we can swim!" Salome pushed Alex to the bathroom.

"Alright, alright!" Alex laughed, looking back at Matt. "I'll be right out. You lot can go ahead and take a dip."

"CANNONBALL!" Matt ran out of the glass doors, jumping into the pool curled up in a ball. Karen was right behind him, diving in the pool. Arthur held Salome's hand, gently stepping down the stairs into the water.

The four of them splashed around for a couple of minutes before Alex stepped through the glass doors. Matt's jaw dropped a little. He had seen her naked, but that didn't take away how incredible she looked in that bright red bikini. "Matthew, dear, can you help me put this on?" she interrupted his trance, waving tanning lotion in the air. Matt climbed the ladder, walking over to her. "What, are you just going to tan?"

"I can't swim! Just dyed my hair, sweetie. I don't want it to turn green!"

"Then why'd you say yes to swimming?" he asked, but he was already grabbing the lotion from her ready to rub her down. He definitely wasn't going to say no to that.

"Well you all can have fun and I can sunbathe. Sounded just fine to me," she shrugged, smiling as she felt his hands over her. She hummed at his touch, arching her back as he coated her in lotion.

"Well, at least you look bloody fantastic. Can't say I won't enjoy just staring at you all afternoon," he smiled at her.

Karen beamed at the two of them knowingly while Arthur just raised his brows in confusion, having absolute no clue of what was going on between Alex and Matt.

"All done, Kingston. Unless you want me to get underneath the suit," he grinned at her, eyes darting to her cleavage.

She laughed. "Not a chance, Smith."

As night fell, everyone got out of the pool and dried off. Matt barbequed dinner and lit a fire outside, and they all gathered next to the fire and ate the fantastic food from the grill. Matt sat very close to Alex, and she leaned her head on his shoulder. Arthur continued to stare suspiciously at the pair, until a short kiss between the two confirmed his beliefs.

"Soooo...are you two...umm..." Arthur finally said something, and suddenly everyone looked at him and laughed.

"Oh, we forgot to tell Arthur!" Karen gasped, putting her hand over her mouth and laughing.

"Whoops! Um, yes, Darvill... Alex and I are sort of in item now," Matt scratched his cheek.

"You bloke! You didn't even ask my permission to date my daughter!" Arthur threw a chicken bone at Matt and he surprisingly caught it.

"OH MY GOD! Matt displayed coordination with something other than a football!" Karen's eyes widened in shock, eliciting a round of laughter from everyone except Matt.

"Hey!" Matt glared at her, crossing his arms.

"It's sort of true, sweetie. You're the biggest klutz I have ever met!" Alex admitted, wrapping her arms around him.

"Yeah, remember that time we were filming Flesh and Stone and the idiot broke one of the weeping angel statues?!" Karen laughed.

"Oh, yes! Oh, the prop master was having a fit!' Alex waved her hands in front of Karen, laughing at Matt who was still pouting.

"Or that time when he was getting up from the table at one of the read-throughs and he completely toppled over the table!" Arthur added.

Everyone continued to add Matt's clumsiest moments, and even Salome had a couple to share like the time he spilt coffee all over his keyboard during a Skype chat.

Alex looked over to Matt, who was scrunching up his face so much that he looked like an English bulldog. "Oh, darling. It's alright. I think it's adorable," she pressed a kiss to his cheek, and he couldn't help but smile a bit. Admittedly, it was really funny. And he couldn't be cross when he was so happy to be able to be so relationship-y with Alex. He loved having her close to him, not having to hold back everytime he wanted to express his feelings either verbally or physically. He loved being able to soak in her smell and her essence, and stare at her absolutely shamelessly. This was pure bliss, and he never wanted it to end.

Even saying goodbye to her that night made him feel weak on the insides. She allowed him to drive her back to Nicola's, Salome fast asleep in the back seat. They held hands the whole way, and they couldn't stop smiling at one another.

"I'll see you again soon, hm? When Doctor Who comes on this weekend?" Alex asked, playing with his collar after she put Salome to bed.

He nodded vigorously, glad that she brought it up this time. "Of course, love...I honestly can't wait."

"Me neither," she beamed, and he kissed her. She was surprised by the way her foot popped up, her emotions swirling within her. "Goodnight," she whispered against his lips.

"Sweet dreams," he kissed her once more. "I'll call you in the morning."

She nodded, burying her face into his neck and pressing a chilling kiss against it. For a few minutes they just stood there in front of the door, bodies pressed cozily together. She could feel his pulse pounding against his neck, and her own heart hammered against her chest. She hadn't felt like this in a long time, and even then she wasn't sure any emotion ever made her feel as warm as Matthew Robert Smith did.

And she was absolutely terrified.

* * *

**Also this chapter sort of reminded me of the 4th of July here in the states. Barbequeing and swimming. That's 'Murrica for you.m**

**I cracked myself up so much imagining Alex taking selfies. That mental image is priceless! I was giggling so much.**

**If you didn't get the 'I'm not bovvered' thing, it was a Catherine Tate joke and if you didn't get it you need to go on YouTube and look up Lauren Cooper PRONTO. **

**Wow, I've had a lot to say about this chapter. Like I said, it was fun to write! The next couple of chapters will sort of be filler chapters. I'm looking forward to posting the one where Matt breaks one of Alex's rules. I won't tell which one because, well, spoilers! **

**I am going to shut up now. Thank you all for the reviews! They keep me going. **


	19. In The Dark

**I would just like to take this time to remind everyone that even though it's loosely based off of real people, this is completely fictional and isn't an actual portrayal of these actor's lives. (Though no one can dissuade me that Matt and Alex are shagging behind closed doors.)**

**The chapter title has two meanings. One, a sexual reference like things people do in the dark. So I will forwarn everyone that this is a very kinky chapter. Two, in the dark also refers to keeping a secret. "Keeping someone in the dark." And I think that really goes along well with what this chapter is about.**

**Hoping to update really soon! Thanks everyone for all the reviews!**

* * *

She was so completely unprepared for this.

Matt's family never showed up at the Doctor Who parties before, so Alex didn't expect to walk through the door Saturday to meet the Smiths for the first time.

"Oh my God, it's Alex Kingston!" Matt's mother gasped, walking over to the slightly younger woman as she made her entrance. "Hello! I'm Matt's mum. I'm a big fan!" she held out her hand.

Alex shot a wide-eyed glare at Matt, who stood across the room with his mouth slightly ajar. Obviously, he didn't think this through.

At all.

Matt's mom stepped back, suddenly frowning when she noticed Alex's brash reaction to her. "I'm sorry, Miss Kingston, I didn't mean to..."

"No, no...hello," Alex forced an actress smile, shaking Matt's mother's hand. "It's very nice to meet you! You just caught me a little off guard...Matt didn't tell me you were coming," she shot the idiot a death glare and his eyes shot to the floor.

"Oh, you know how men are when they leave the nest. They almost completely forget us parents so much that it's like we're not even here!" Matt's mother laughed. "You gave me a fright! I thought I offended you!"

"NO! Of course not...and you must be Mr. Smith?" Alex looked nervously to the man beside her, and he nodded.

"That would be me, Miss Kingston," he extended his hand. "Nice to meet you!"

"And since Matt apparantly isn't doing introductions, I'm Laura! Matt's sis," Laura skipped the handshake and hugged Alex. "It's so nice to finally meet you! Matt talks about you all the time!"

Alex smiled. "Does he?" he eyes floated back to Matt, who was walking towards them and staring at the floor. "Matt, can I have a word with you?" she asked.

He gulped, nodding and walking out by the pool.

"You don't know how to give someone a notice?!" Alex scorned him once they were out of earshot.

He continued to look at his feet. "I'm sorry. I didn't think much of it, I guess..."

"I've never met your parents before and all of the sudden I walk in and they're HERE! How the hell do you not think much of it?!"

He didn't respond.

"Do they know?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

"No. Why? Should we tell them?" Matt asked, finally looking up at her.

"What?! No! Are you kidding! Your mom looks like she's my age! She'd have a fit. How old is she, anyway?" Alex put her hands on her hips and avoided his gaze.

"Fifty-four..." Matt mumbled.

Alex's eyes widened. Matt's mom was only six years older than her. "Oh God..." she suddenly felt sick to her stomach. She turned her back to him and held her rib cage in discomfort.

"If it makes you feel any better, my dad's 66. They have a bit of an age difference, too," he tried to reason with her a bit.

"Ten years is different than almost twenty!" she whipped back around to face him, crossing her arms.

"Alex... they won't freak out about it, I promise," Matt stepped closer to her, enveloping his arms around her and putting his face in her curls.

She stayed completely stiff in his embrace, her face like stone.

"Matt, honey, the show is about about to start-" Matt's mom opened the glass door to see them hugging. She looked a bit confused, tilting her head as her lips parted. "Um..."

Matt and Alex seperated like two negatively attracted magnets, and Matt almost stumbled back into the pool.

"Um...yes, mum...I'll be right there!" Matt walked foward.

"I'm sorry, did I..um..interrupt..." Lynne looked at Matt, then looked back at Alex who had her back to her.

"No," Matt said sternly, walking past her and sitting on the couch.

Alex looked up awkwardly at Lynne, tucking a curl behind her hair before walking inside. When the show began, Alex was sitting on the opposite side of the room with Salome in her lap. She didn't even look at Matt, her eyes fixated on the episode that she wasn't paying attention to. Her thoughts raced, and she realized that if she really wanted to try to make things with Matt work then she needed to set things right with his parents. She was determined to not have the first meeting with the Smiths be awkward.

When the episode was over and people rose to leave, Alex walked up to Lynne. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Smith...I didn't catch your first name?"

"It's Lynne," she smiled slightly. "Nothing to apologize for, I assure you! And your daughter is a gem," she looked down at Salome. "Looks just like you!"

Alex smiled, looking down at her daughter. She really did, save for the color of her eyes. But all of her facial features screamed Alex. "Thank you."

"So are you gonna be an actress like your mum?" Laura asked the little girl, bending down to Salome's eye level.

"No," Matt interjected, placing his hands on Salome's shoulders. "She's gonna be an artist! Right, poppet?"

Salome beamed. "Would you like to see my paintings?!"

"Of course!" Lynne cried with delight.

"Okay! Just oooone second! Matty can I borrow your computer?!"

"Of course, princess," he said, opening it for her. "Mum, call Auntie Nicola and tell her to open her Skype so she can show everyone my pictures!"

Alex smiled, doing just so.

"Is Nicola your sister?" Lynne asked, and Alex nodded with a smile before beginning to talk to her younger sister.

The next few minutes, Nicola was showing Matt's family Salome's wonderful drawings, and the Smiths were all ooing and aweing over her talent.

Matt and Alex smiled at each other. Leave it to Salome to save the night.

"Well, Miss Kingston, it was a pleasure meeting you and your daughter! She is very talented!" Lynne said as she was ready to leave.

"Thank you, and please, call me Alex!" she reached out and hugged the woman, smiling happily. "I hope to see you again!"

"Well, Alex, I suppose I'll see you next Saturday, if we're invited for the finale?" Lynne cocked her brow at Matt.

"Of course, mum. You and dad and this thing," he wrapped an arm over Laura's shoulders. His sister elbowed him and rolled her eyes.

Everyone laughed, and Matt hugged his family goodbye before sending them on there way. Matt looked back to Alex with a relieved smile, before running over to Salome. "Princess, you are BRILLIANT!" he picked her up, hugging her tightly.

"What? What did I do?" she asked with a yawn.

Matt laughed. "Just thank you for existing, okay," he kissed the top of her head.

"You're welcome," she yawned again, setting her head on Matt's shoulder.

"Sounds like someone's tired," Matt said, feeling Salome nod against him. He gave Alex a knowing look, and she sighed.

"Fine, we can stay the night," she told him and Matt beamed.

He put Salome to bed, tucking her in before returning to his room. He saw Alex already waiting there for him, completely naked under the covers. He arched a brow at her. "I guess you're not cross with me anymore?" he asked, shutting the door.

She smirked. "Oh, I never said that. I'm still very, very cross with you Matthew. But that's alright. Angry sex is amazing," she purred, and he practically tore off his clothes. He jumped into bed next to her, kissing her hard.

"Well, in that case, you should be very, very angry with me," he growled, biting down on her lip.

She raked her nails down his back, groaning loudly as she wrapped her leg around his body and pulled him closer to her. "Fuck me," she whispered, biting his shoulder.

He shuddered and hissed, grinding his cock against her soaked flesh. She showed her dissapproval of his teasing by lifting her teeth slightly higher and sinking them into his neck. He grunted, pushing inside her. She released his flesh, whimpering in pleasure as he filled her. She lapped and nibbled at his ear, emitting soft moans into it. "I said_ fuck me_, damn it._ More_...Matt," she bucked her hips hard against him, and he gave in to her demands, pounding both harder and faster into her.

She gasped, throwing her head back against the pillow and smiling. "Mmh, Matt...yes...yes...YES!" she cried, her nails digging into his shoulders.

"Baby," Matt interrupted on a serious note, slowing down much to her displeasure. "Not gonna ...last long... if I keep this up."

"Don't care," she growled, pulling his hair back.

He smirked. This was certainly a different side to her, and he couldn't say he wasn't turned on by it even though he was pretty sure his back was bleeding. He continued with his fast pace and hard thrusts, and she took it _all _with high-pitched mewls and low growls.

He felt the build-up of his climax and his mouth fell open in absolute ecstasy. He slipped a hand between their bodies, rubbing Alex where she needed it most. She fell apart, and they rode through their orgasms together.

Matt rolled off of her, panting heavily. She caught a glimpse of his red, scratched back and gasped when she saw the slight blood she had drawn. "Oh my God, Matt! I'm so sorry!" she got up to turn the light on, but he pulled her back into bed.

"I know. It's okay. Just a few scratches," he whispered into her curls, holding her tightly.

"I didn't realize I was scratching you that hard," she frowned, kissing him gently.

"Alex, it's alright," he assured her, nuzzling his nose against hers. "I'm more worried about you being sore after that."

"Oh, I am," she bit her lip, cuddling as close to him as possible.

She seemed a little too happy about that, and he raised his eyebrows at her. He buried his face into her hair, mumbling something about her being out of her mind before dozing off to sleep.

* * *

The following Saturday went much better than the first. Alex got along well with Matt's family, though it was difficult having to keep her distance from him and she was a bit jealous of Karen's close relationship with Laura. Lynne was lovely, though, and Alex was very pleased that she got along so well with Matt's mom.

When 'A Good Man Goes to War' aired, it was just as exciting to see River's reveal as it was when they filmed it. Lynne was absolutely freaking out. "Matt! I can't believe you held it in that long! Oh my God!"

"You should have seen our faces when we found out," Karen added. "Moffat kept it a complete secret until we filmed it! Everyone was given false scripts and everything!"

"That's brilliant!" Lynne clapped her hands together. "Where did the Doctor run off to after he found out who she was?!" she asked Steven.

Steven raised his eyebrows. "Can't say, there's children around," he said, looking at Salome.

"Oh my..." Lynne said. "That's definitely not something I want to think about, then! But the Doctor and River...they do end up married, right?"

"Spoilers!" Alex answered and everyone laughed.

"Oh my God, she said the word!" Laura cried with delight.

"I use it all the time now," Alex admitted.

"Life immitates art," Steven commented, flashing knowing glances at Matt and Alex. Alex blushed and rubbed her lips together. Life immitated art more than most people in the room knew.

"Well I love the Doctor and River together!" Lynne said with a bright smile.

Alex grinned. Matt's mom liked them together! Well, fictionally at least.

The conversation continued, everyone commenting on River and the Doctor's relationship. All Alex and Matt could do was helplessly look at one another in a mixture of guilt and amusement.

"Well, no more _Doctor Who_ until August!" Matt sat up. "But you will LOVE 'Lets Kill Hitler!'"

"Aww. We'll have to find some other excuse to get together, soon," Lynne said and everyone agreed. People began to leave, and despite the fact that Salome was tired, Alex decided to leave too.

"Well, Matt...I'll see you around?" the older fox-of-a-woman looked at her boyfriend.

Matt nodded, and he realized how painful it was to not be able to kiss her goodbye in front of everyone.

He hated hiding this.

* * *

Alex didn't see Matt much during the rest of June, paranoid that someone would follow either of them and snap a photo of her entering his home or he entering Nicola's.

Matt felt like he was going to burst. Skype calls and chaste texts weren't enough to feed his desire for her, and hiding it from his parents sure wasn't helping.

"Have you spoken to Daisy since the break-up?" Laura pulled him from his thoughts as they sat down for a family dinner at the Smiths'.

Matt's eyebrows raised and he almost felt guilty for not having spared Daisy a single thought since the break-up. "Um...no...I haven't," he answered, waving it off like he didn't want to talk about it.

"Hm. Shame," Lynne commented, resting her chin on her folded hands."Are you ever going to tell us what _really_ happened?"

"I just didn't love her anymore," he answered quickly.

"I heard she moved on," Laura added. "Some bloke snatched her up pretty quickly."

Matt scrunched up his nose a bit. "Yeah, well, probably met him at some party."

"What about you... have you found anyone in your interests?" Lynne asked, her eyes sparkling as she tried to make eye contact with her son, but he just looked down at his still-full plate.

"Oh, he's being quiet!" Laura gasped with a smile. "There is someone, isn't there?!"

"No. I'm focused on my career, right now. I'm not interested in having a girlfriend," Matt said, his acting skills not entirely convincing.

Laura laughed. "Matt, you don't start back on _Who_ until next year! Surely you have time."

"And from what I hear, the ladies are falling all over you," Lynne noted.

It was true. Anywhere he went, he couldn't escape the hoard of young women biding for his attention. And yet he didn't return the attention. He just smiled, took a picture, signed an autograph or two then be on his way. No matter how pretty or eligible these women seemed, he would turn them away without a second thought and he was sure the press had noticed. They either thought he was gay or he just wasn't ready to move on yet. Obviously, neither were true. Then again, half of the crap in the media wasn't true.

"I'm just not ready," he shrugged.

Lynne sighed. "Excuses, excuses."

Matt's father, normally quiet during these conversations, decided to join. "What about Karen? She's a pretty girl."

"CHRIST, why does EVERYONE always assume it's Karen?!" Matt said angrily, taking his family by surprise.

"Sorry, son...I was just saying. I know you two are very close and..."

"We're_ friends_, dad. I'm no more interested in Kazza than I am in Darville," he sighed, then had a thought that made him crack a smile. It obviously lightened the mood, because everyone laughed and returned to their meals.

_Is there anyway you can sneak out for the night? xx_ he texted Alex as he got into his car.

_What? Like a rebellious teenager? xx _she texted back, and he could almost see her smiling at him with her brows cocked in her sassy way.

_If you like to think of it that way. Come stay with me tonight. I miss you. xxxxxxxxxxx_

_Mmhmm. Sounds like someone's a bit horny. ;) x_

_Perhaps. But I mostly just miss you. And I want to talk to you about something. I'm on my way back from my parents now. Meet me there? I left something for you on the bed. xx_

_Oh this should be good. See you soon. xxx_

Matt grinned, before cranking up his car and heading home eagerly.

She was already in the house by the time he pulled in. He had given her a spare key in case of emergency. Well, the emergency was whenever he 'needed' her. He practically ran down the hall, sliding to the stop in front of the bedroom door. "Alex?" he called, not seeing her in his bedroom.

"This is a little too mutton dressed as lamb for me, darling," she cried from his bathroom, and he leaned on the doorframe and grinned.

"NOOOO! Come on, I'm sure you look beautiful," he told her, biting his lip. "And you said you like rabbits. Did I get the size right?"

"Fits like a glove!" she answered, and he was already unbuttoning his trousers.

"Then let's have a look, Kingston," he insisted, closing his bedroom door behind him and crossing his arms in anticipation.

Alex scuttled out of the bathroom, biting her lip and tucking her hands behind her back. The lingerie Matt had bought for her was a white, strapless body suit that cut off at the pantyline. The sweetheart neckline that flattered her full breasts, her skin beaming under the dim lighting of the room. She wore a black bowtie around her neck that matched the lace on the corset, and the outfit was complete with rabbit ears perched on her curls and a fluffy tail plopped on her bum.

At first, Matt's mouth dropped. His jaw wiggled around until he could finally settle on a grin, but the grin quickly fell until he was just staring at her with his mouth hanging ajar. His eyes were all over the place; all over _her_ places. He was red as a tomato and hot as June. He quickly threw his shirt over his head in desperation to cool himself down. It was futile, however, because all the heat was boiling from the inside, his cock growing achingly hard due to his otherworldly arousal.

She giggled and blushed, chewing on her lip. "So, you like it?"

"Bloody hell Kingston," he growled, walking briskly over to her and picking her up until she was pressed snugly against the wall beside the bathroom. He kissed her ardently, moaning with urgent need. She wrapped her legs around him, pulling from his kiss to gasp for breath. As soon as she did, he was nipping at her neck wildly, his hands wrapped around her waist and his thumbs rubbing circles over her breasts. "You look so fucking hot," he breathed in her ear, tugging her from the wall and laying her down the bed. Her bunny ears swung off in the process, but he paid them no heed. He tugged at the laces of her corset, and he tugged her out of the one-piece just as quickly as she had put it on. He scattered tender kisses over her whole body as he revealed each bit of skin, nipping at her ankles as he finished tugging the lingerie off. He continued to kiss his way up, nibbling at her knees and making her shudder. He brushed his lips across the insides of her thighs, then continued to relish in kissing her torso until her entire body was blushing.

"God, Matt..." Alex moaned, a wave of nerves surging through her and causing her back to arch. "Need you...now..."

He didn't object, and he plunged into her. She jumped, releasing a sharp scream before throwing herself back on the bed and lunging her hips forward rapidly. He fucked her senseless, his thrusts matching her fast-paced moans. Or maybe it was her moans matching his fast-paced thrusts. She crumbled first, her legs stiffening and her entire body shaking with pleasure. He smiled, pounding into her even harder and making her scream as he prolonged her orgasm until he met his. He released with a loud groan, panting heavily whilst laying over her. Sweat dripped off his hot skin, and he got up to retrieve a towel and clean up the mess he made. He dryed off her body first, and she smiled dreamily as he rubbed the towel over her. "Have I ever told you how incredible you are?" she inquired softly, her beautiful eyes meeting his gaze.

He raised his eyebrows and smiled sheepishly. "Not that I remember," he answered, kissing her lips and laying beside her. He wrapped one arm around her, using his free hand to trace the lines on her face. He admired her features; the two lines on either side of her mouth, the bump on her nose that was oddly sexy, the way her left eye had one more wrinkle under it than the right. He brushed his fingers over her luscious lips, then cupped her round cheeks and pressed a soft kiss to her nose.

Her eyes fluttered closed and she sighed at his touch, her skin now like braille from the chill bumps he elicited. He touched her so..._lovingly_, and it made her heart pound. She broke the tender moment by pulling away a bit, opening her eyes and looking at him seriously. "What did you want to talk about?"

He sighed, almost forgetting after the always-amazing sex. Then again, she could make him forget his own name. "I...I don't want to hide this from my family anymore."

Her brows raised and she frowned subtly, breaking eye contact with him. "Matt... more people know than I'm comfortable with right now."

"I know, I know...this is supposed to be a secret but I hate having to lie to my family. It's not like they'll tell anyone..."

"Yes, Matt, but that's besides the point!" she sighed in frustration, and he rubbed her back in comfort.

"We don't have to if you don't want to..." he reminded her, and she nodded.

"Not now. Maybe in a few months if we're still together," she looked at him and immediately regretted it, his facial expression darkening when she said 'if' they were still together. "But right now we've barely started. This is all so confusing and so terrifying for me, Matt..."

"I know, I know...I'm sorry. I'm not trying to be an inconsiderate idiot."

"You're not an inconsiderate idiot," she cupped his face, smiling sweetly at him. "You're actually the most _overly_-considerate idiot I've ever met."

He laughed softly. "Thanks?"

"You're welcome. Was that all?"

"Yeah..."

"Good. Now, if you don't mind, I'll be off to sleep now."

"Sweet dreams, my little bunny rabbit," he kissed her and she laughed through the kiss.

"Goodnight, Matthew," she mumbled, snuggling close to him and drifting off to sleep. Matt smiled, sleeping comfortably next to her and wishing it could be this way every night.

* * *

**Like I said. Kinky chapter. Like I made myself uncomfortable and I was really hesitant about posting this chapter. I didn't want to seem masochistic or anything. It's not like she ripped him apart. Just sliiiiighhtt eeetyyy beeeeettty little scratches. **

**Also, I know there's been probably too much sex lately but I really think that helps depict the sort of relationship Matt and Alex are having at the moment. She really likes him but it terrifies her so she prefers to just focus on the sex. And though he's falling in love with her, he's not exactly going to mind all the sex. So right now they just have a very physical but slightly fluffy relationship where they are both holding back their emotions a bit. But we'll see how that progresses with the long-distance thing. **


	20. No Ocean Wide Enough

**Warning, this chapter may be triggering for some. It was the hardest thing I've ever had to write.**

**Once again, this is no true portrayal of any of the actors and it's for pure fiction and in no way am I saying Florian is really like this. **

* * *

**Late July 2011**

"I don't want you to leave," Matt mumbled into Alex's neck as she fixed her hair the morning of her flight.

Alex smiled sadly, looking at his reflection in the mirror as she applied her mascara. "I'm sorry, darling," she croaked through her groggy vocal chords. "Salome starts school soon, and I have pilot season coming up."

"I'm going to miss you both," he told her, rubbing his tired eyes and yawning. "Speaking of Salome, I'll go make sure she's up. Think I can fix you breakfast before Nicola shows up?" he asked, somewho managing his puppy eyes despite how tired and bloodshot they were.

"Breakfast sounds perfect, sweetie," she smiled, kissing his cheek.

Matt smiled and brushed her arm gently before exiting his room. He travelled down the hall to Salome's bedroom, knocking on the door. "You awake, princess?" he asked, hearing a groan in response. "Better wake up. I'm fixing breakfast!" he heard some knocking around and Salome ran to the door, opening it up and rubbing the dream sand from her eyes.

"What's for breakfast?" she asked.

"French toast a la Matty!" he answered, and she beamed. "Might want to brush out that hair first!" he grabbed a handful of Salome's hair. It was almost as wild as her mum's.

"You wanna brush it for me?" she looked up at him hopefully, and he couldn't resist that face.

"Get your brush," he sighed, and she was in-and-out of the bedroom in seconds, hairbrush in hand. They went into the living room and Salome sat on the floor, Matt sitting behind her on the couch. He combed through the mess with gentle care.

"I'm gonna miss you, Matty," Salome pouted.

"I'm gonna miss you, too, poppet," he replied sadly. "I'll try and visit you, how's that?"

She beamed. "Okay! When do you start being the Doctor again?"

"I film the Christmas special next month, but after that I don't come back until January," he answered.

"Woaaahhh. That's a LONG time!"

"Not really. It'll fly by. The older you get, the faster time passes."

"I can't wait to grow up," she stated, and there was a touch of barely-detectable sadness in her voice.

Matt frowned. "Why do you say that?"

"Grown ups can do whatever they want," she began, and Matt rolled his eyes with a light-hearted smile. "And everyone takes them seriously," she continued. "No one takes me seriously except you and mom."

"And your dad, right?" Matt raised a brow, feeling like Florian should have been included on that list.

Salome stayed silent for a moment. "Not really...sometimes when I talk to him I just feel like he's nodding his head and not really listening."

Matt held his tongue from what he wanted to say and finished her hair. "All done...and Salome?"

"Yes, Matty?" she turned and looked at him as he set the brush down and leaned close to her, staring her right in the eyes.

"If you ever need someone to listen to you, you know you can talk to me. I will ALWAYS listen to you."

Her smile became brighter than ever, and she flung herself at him. "I love you, Matty!"

He smiled, squeezing her tightly. "I love you, too," he told her with complete honesty. God, did he love this little girl.

Alex walked in, smiling upon the precious moment. "What happened to breakfast?" she asked.

"The princess needed her royal hair-brushing!" Matt defended his lack of cooking with a smile.

Salome giggled. "Well I want my royal breakfast now, please!"

Alex and Matt laughed. "At your service, milady," Matt told her, rising from the couch and starting on the French toast.

Alex sighed, realizing how much she was going to miss him fumbling around his house on morning-afters, making breakfast for her and her daughter, sitting down and talking like a ..._family. _She observed him for a long while, her eyes lingering on his arse as he sauntered around the kitchen. Given he was such a great footballer, he had great cheeks.

The last 'Matty breakfast' definitely went out with a bang, to say. It was absolutely delicious and Alex probably had more than she should have. She couldn't bring herself to care. She certainly burned plenty of calories when she stayed at Matt's.

"I'm going to have to find a new work out," Alex said aloud, going white when she realized her daughter was still here, _and she was still ten._

"What do you mean, mom?" Salome asked innocently, and Matt looked at his girlfriend with a smug grin.

"Um...I mean I'm going to have to work this off later," Alex tried to cover up. "When I get off the plane. So I'm not lazing around the house. You're going to be home with your dad and I'm going to be stuck at home alone," she said that last bit sadly, and Matt reached over and grabbed her hand.

"I'm always a phone call away," he told her, looking at her lovingly.

"And an entire ocean," she added with a lip-twisting frown.

"And if you really need me, I can always arrange a flight," he added.

She merely smiled at him, lacing his fingers in hers and relishing in the last bit of physical contact she would have with him for a while.

Salome smiled at both of them. She was kind of going to miss the mommy-Matty cooties floating around everywhere.

The sound of Nicola's car pulling in made Matt's stomach drop. "Just like that, you're gone..." he said solemnly, walking his girls to the door.

"Remember. Phone call away," she told him, placing a hand on his cheek.

"Yeah, and an ocean," he kissed the palm of her hand before hugging her tighter than ever. "Call me when you get there. Get some rest..."

"I miss you already," she wasn't sure why she was tearing up, but she fought it as much as possible. She hugged him back, then pulled away and kissed him sweetly. "Goodbye, darling."

He noticed the tears spring from underneath her closed eyelids, and his lips parted, his face full of hurt. "See you around, Kingston."

She turned around gracefully, grabbing Salome's hand and walking towards Nicola's car.

* * *

The entire flight was completely awkward. She regretted agreeing to Florian's suggestion of sitting in the same row. Salome sat between him, distracting her father by talking about her time in Surrey. She left out the parts about Matt, bless her. Not that it seemed like Florian was listening, and eventually she just stopped talking. When she did, Florian's eyes met Alex's. He smiled at her, and she forced a smile back. She knew by his oddly kind demeanor and the way he hugged her when he saw her earlier that something was definitely off about him. When they got off the flight, he hugged her again and tucked a curl behind her ear. She felt uncomfortably close to him, and so she distanced herself. He seemed upset by it.

"I'll..see you next week?" he said in his thick German accent, and she nodded slowly in confusion. _He was acting so weird. _

She continued to recieve texts from her ex-husband throughout the week, asking about how her day was and whatnot. Small talk.

As Alex told Matt about all of this, he nodded his head slowly. "What do you think is going through his head?" Matt asked.

Alex shrugged. "Who knows. Maybe he wants something?"

"I don't know, I haven't met him...you would know better than I. I just hope he has no thoughts of reconciliation," he glared at the bottom of the computer screen, focusing on her exposed collar bone rather than her eyes.

"Even if he did," she touched her heart, and he looked up at her. "You have nothing to worry about. I have no intentions to go back to him, nor am I interested."

"Still. If he touches you he'll have a bloody broken nose. Literally bloody."

"Matt," she said sternly. "You can't risk your career over something like that. Besides, I doubt reconciliation is on his mind. If you heard the things he used to say to me..."

"I don't even want to know. I'd kill him."

She smiled, and she was so cute it hurt because she was so far away. "You're kind of cute when you're defensive of me."

"I'll always be defensive of you," he answered.

"Mmh, my knight in shining armor," she leaned her face on her folded hands, and he had to hold back from kissing the screen.

He finally cracked a smile. "A good king is always a knight in the presence of his queen."

She cocked a brow in surprise. "That was rather poetic, for you."

"A good king is also a poet, showering his queen with love in praises," he smirked when she began to blush.

She touched her mouth with her hand, grinning and blushing madly. "I miss you," she finally said when she recovered from a fit of giggles.

"I miss you too, love," he told her, the last word rolling off his lips with such denied truth. "You get Salome back tomorrow?"

"No. Florian texted me saying he has a last-minute business trip to Chicago and he's going to bring her over late tonight," Alex rolled her eyes. "I told him he should just bring her in the afternoon, but he complained about 'wanting to spend as much time with her as possible' quote on quote. He's taking her to the zoo and the movies tonight. He better have her home before her bedtime."

Matt nodded in agreement, then Alex told him she had better go. "Okay. I'll talk to you and the princess tomorrow, right?"

"Of course. Have a great night!"

"And you have a great day, Kingston. Miss you."

"Miss you too," she blew him a kiss then let him off the line, her stomach bubbling with emotions.

* * *

Alex tapped her foot on the floor as she looked at the clock. It was ten minutes til ten when Florian came knocking on the door. She answered the door, appearing very cross when she saw Salome already asleep in her dad's arms.

"Sorry," he whispered. "The movie ran later than we thought and she fell asleep in the car."

"Put her to bed," Alex said, stepping back.

He did so, tucking her in and then returning to the living room.

"I told you to have her home by nine!" Alex scorned, crossing her arms. "She's still not over the jet lag! She needs her rest!" she fully expected him to snap back at her, but he didn't.

He apologized to her in German, taking her by surprise. He then asked if he could make it up to her somehow, which surprised her more.

"Nein," she responded, adding that it wasn't necissary. He asked if they could talk, perhaps over a bottle of wine and she sighed, going to the kitchen. "Is rum alright? It's all I have besides whiskey."

He nodded and pulled a chair for himself. She sat across from him, pouring them both a glass. He told her he had been watching Doctor Who and she raised an eyebrow, surprised by this. He continued to compliment her on how well she did, and it even made her smile. He then asked her about any other projects she was working on, and she said she had none planned. It depended on how well pilot season went. He wished her luck, and then he was silent for a while.

Feeling uncomfortable in the silence, she brought up Salome. How she liked the zoo today, and if she liked the movie. He responded with positive things, and they talked about her for a long while. She took note that he was consuming a good bit of alchohol, much more than she, and the bottle that was full was now almost empty. She only had one glass. She was going to wait until he stopped talking about Salome to say something, but when silence finally fell she was rendered speechless by him tenderly stroking her hand.

"Ich vermisse dich," he told her he missed her as she looked up at him with wide eyes and parted lips. He continued to say that he wanted to try to fix things between them. "Ich_ liebe_ dich, Alex..." he leaned in to kiss her.

"I think you've had enough alchohol," she replied, trying to take the glass away from him but he grasped her wrist and finished downing the substance. He replied by saying he could have as much as he liked. He then leaned closer to her again, causing her to jump out of her seat and take several steps back. She was panting a bit, and she looked terrified as he walked to her. He pressed her against the wall in the hallway and kissed her forcefully. She flailed her arms about, desperately trying to pry her face from his but his fingers held her head in place. She screamed into his mouth, bringing up a knee and kicking him close to his groin. He stepped back, freeing her and she tried running to her bedroom.

Big mistake. He ran after her, grabbing the door before she had a chance to lock it and then locking himself in. "What's the matter?" he asked tauntingly, grabbing her and shoving her down on the bed.

"I don't want this! I'm done with you!" she sobbed as he held her down.

He kissed her neck, holding onto her arms painfully. "We used to have such great sex," he growled, unbuttoning her shirt with his teeth.

"NO! What are you doing?! Stop! Florian, PLEASE, stop!" she pleaded, struggling against his hold but he was too strong.

"Nothing we haven't done before," he slurred drunkenly, raising his hips and holding her down by the ribs with his weight. She gasped through her tears, feeling crushed under his body. He hiked up her skirt and began to play with her through her panties. "Come on, Alex. Get wet for me baby."

"NO!" Alex screamed hoarsely, barely able to breathe between her sobbing, his weight on her ribs, and the full-out panic attack she was having. She felt him retract his fingers, and she tried to clear her eyes by blinking her tears to see what he was doing. He was removing his jeans. Oh God. She couldn't take this. She was going to have a heart attack. She couldn't breathe. But she needed to speak. Anything she could say to get him to stop. "FLORIAN!" she screamed. "I HAVE A BOYFRIEND!"

* * *

The last thing Matt expected was a call at 6 am. He only answered it because of name on the screen. "Alex?"

"Matty," he heard the shaky voice from the other line, and she sounded so terrified that it made his stomach drop.

"Salome?!" he cried, his eyes widening as if he wasn't just asleep a minute ago.

"I-I'm s-sorry if...if I w-woke you-you u-u-up...Y-you said...I-I c-could talk to you w-whenever I-I needed to..."

"Princess, you're scaring me. What's wrong?!" his heart pounded.

"I'm sc-scared. I...I woooke u-uup because...cuz I heard mommy screaming. She's sob..she's sobbing. And I hear a man in there. The...the door's locked and I can't...I can't get in..."

Matt looked absolutely horrified as Salome told him what was happening. He didn't know what to do. He was an entire ocean away and someone was hurting his Alex. A mixture of fright and anger fueled the adrenaline rush, and he found himself tugging on clothes. "Can you hear what's being said?" he asked her through his bated breath.

"No. Just the screaming and really low noises..." he could hear Salome crying, and it broke his heart.

"Salome, sweetie, you have to call the police. Lock yourself in the closet. No matter who it is, don't let him see you and don't let him know you're there."

"What about mom?"she screeched, locking herself in her closet.

"You live in LA. Someone should be there within five minutes but you have to get off the phone with me, princess. Everything will be okay."

She shut her eyes tight and nodded. "Okay...thank you Matty. I love you... Goodbye..."

"I love you too. Goodbye...stay safe!" he heard her make a noise of approval and the line ended. Before he knew it, he was in his car, driving towards the airport.

* * *

"You...what?!" Florian got off of her, and she rolled off the bed, beginning to fix her clothing.

"I am seeing someone..." she said shakily, wiping the tears from her face. The look on his face said everything she didn't need to hear, and before he could actually speak she continued, "What? I was a SINGLE woman, Florian! We are DIVORCED! You made it VERY clear you didn't want to be with me! What was I supposed to do? Stay single for the rest of my life while you move on to multiple women?!" she was steaming angry, her fear having faded. She reached under the mattress and grabbed a gun, embodying River Song as she pointed it at him.

"Alex! What are you doing?!" he cried, trying to unlock the door, as if he was afraid she would actually shoot him.

"Defending myself," she spat, her jaw tightening. "I know you're not in the right state of mind right now and I'm not about to let you back me up into a corner like a little mouse like Ralph did!"

He was silent for a moment, and he fell to his knees. He apologized to her in his language, tears slipping his eyes. She dropped the gun and her face softened, but it didn't change the fact that she was irrevocably angry at him. "Get out of my house."

He stumbled to his feet. "I can't drive home..." he protested.

"For God's sake, I'll drive you then. But if you try anything in the car, I'll bloody kill you!" She slid the gun back under her bed, opening the door and grabbing him by his arm. She led him out to the living room, looking for her phone. "My phone was just on the kitchen table..." she mumbled, looking around for it. She then saw the blue lights outside her window, and she knew exactly where her phone went.

"What are they doing here?!" Florian cried in German, hearing the knock on the door.

Alex answered it, seeing two officers.

"We had a call from a little girl about a domestic case," one of the officers said.

Alex looked back at her ex-husband. She didn't know what to do, but she couldn't exactly lie.

"The little girl said she was hiding in her closet. Ma'am, did that man hurt you?" he asked, noticing her red, tear-stained and slightly bruised cheeks.

"He...almost raped me...but...he stopped...everything's okay now...this isn't necissary..."

"It's absolutely necissary. We're going to have to take him in," he looked to the man next to him, and he walked into her home and put Florian in handcuffs. Alex opened her mouth to protest, before the cop asked another question. "What is your relation to this man?"

She sighed with relief that Salome didn't know, or at least she didn't tell them to out her dad. But she was pretty sure she didn't know. "He's my ex-husband..." she looked behind the cop, making sure none of her neighbors were up. She was terrified of a car driving by and seeing cops at Alex Kingston's home. She was already afraid news would break about her ex-husband being arrested. The cop continued to ask basic questions about Florian, and she answered them all.

"Is that all, officer?"

"Would you like to press charges?"

She thought about it for a long moment. "No. But I would like to file full custody for our daughter."

He gave her some information on custody cases, then left with Florian in the back seat of the car. Thankfully no one in the neighborhood noticed, and she walked back to check on Salome. She opened the closet door, bending down to see her trembling daughter.

"Mom!" she cried, hugging her tightly. "Are you okay?! I was so scared! I didn't know what to do! Who was it?!"

"A man broke in," Alex lied, not wanting to ruin her daughter's mental image of her father.

Salome gasped, holding her hands over her mouth. "Did the cops take him away?! Did he hurt you?!"

"Yes he's gone, and I'm fine. Sweetie, you need to get some sleep."

"Can I come sleep with you?" she asked, tugging on her mom's dress.

"Yes, so you can protect me," Alex smiled brokenly, leading her daughter to her bedroom.

Alex woke in the middle of the night to a nightmare about what had just happened. She tried phoning Matt, but for some reason his phone was off. She paced back and forth in the hallway, biting her fingernails. She continued to walk around the house for hours until she tired herself out, and she finally returned to her bedroom and managed to sleep.

* * *

Alex gasped at the time when she woke up. She had almost slept through the day. She noticed Salome wasn't beside her, and she heard talking in the living room. Her heart stopped and she scrambled to her feet, pulling on her nightie and walking down the hall. When she walked into her living room, she screamed, seeing Matt sitting on the couch with her daughter.

"Good to see that you're up, Kingston," Matt said softly, walking over to her and wrapping her in her arms. "Sorry if I startled you.."

"No, it's fine..." she cleared her throat. "I wasn't expecting you...what are you doing here?!" she pulled away from him, looking up into his eyes.

"I.." he looked back at Salome.

"I kind of called Matty last night before I called the cops..." Salome admitted, sinking her head.

Alex's eyes widened. "Oh God..." her stomach sank. She wasn't ready to tell Matt about this. Florian would be dead before the custody papers were signed. "You flew all this way?"

He raised his hands to her face, brushing the cheeks that were bruised from Florian's fingertips. Anger flashed through his eyes, then watered over with hurt. He kissed where the bruises were, before wrapping her in a hug again. "I had to. I needed to make sure you were okay. Salome said a man broke into your house?"

She pulled from his embrace. She couldn't lie to Matt like that. "Can we not talk about this?"

Matt sighed. "We have to talk about it eventually."

"I'm fine, darling," she smiled, but her voice cracked and he knew she wasn't okay.

"No you're not. We're going to talk about this. I don't care how long I have to stay. I don't care if I have to cancel the Christmas special just to stay here with you."

"Matt, that's not necissary!" she insisted, her eyes pleading with him. "You shouldn't even be here at all... what if someone notices?"

"Let them notice."

"But the rules, Matt..."

"Every rule has an exception. And you are hurt right now, Alex, and that hurts me because I...I care about you. So much," he lifted a hand to cup her face. "I need to be here with you, okay?"

"I told you, I'm fine..." she said weakly, then realized Salome was still in the room. She sat down on the couch, hugging her daughter tightly.

"You want to watch tele with us, mom? Matt brought ice cream!" Salome said enthusiastically.

Alex nodded. "Ice cream for breakfast."

"Kingston, it's almost three in the afternoon. So past breakfast," he tried teasing her, but his voice lacked its usual charming luster and his face was soaked in his worry for her.

"Shut up," she said half-heartedly, reaching for the ice cream. She then looked to her daughter as Matt put in Fern Gully. "Do we need to go school shopping for you, sweetie? You start tomorrow."

"I already went school shopping with dad but I forgot the school supplies at his house."

Matt watched Alex go completely white, and if he didn't know before that it was Florian then he certainly did now. As if the random car in the driveway didn't give it away enough. Salome hadn't been outside, yet, and hadn't noticed.

"I'll...call him...and tell them to bring them here," Alex got up, reaching for her phone and going outside.

Matt frowned, following her outside. "Do you need me to call him?"

Alex looked up at him, her lips parting.

"It was him, wasn't it?" Matt asked, anger in his eyes now.

"I don't want to talk about it," she looked down at her phone.

"I'm going to kill him!" Matt growled.

"Matt, please..."

"What did he do to you?! I need to know, Alex..." his jaw poked out, his face becoming red with fury.

"I can't.." Alex began to cry, and she looked towards Florian's car. "I have to return that to him. I have his keys..I'll just drive by his house and..."

"His house, Alex?! God, what if he's there?!"

"He should still be in jail..." she said lowly. "And keep your voice down, Salome might hear."

"Oh God, you aren't going to let him see her again, are you?!"

"I'm filing for full custody, but he will be able to see her again, yes. He's her father, Matt. I can't just take that away from her. Not completely."

"But he hurt you! He could hurt her, too!"

"He was drunk..."

"I thought he was drove here to drop Salome off last night? Did he drive drunk with Salome in the car?" he asked, his face scrunching up in confusion.

Alex's face became stale. "No..." she looked away from him. "He got drunk while he was here..."

Matt's eyes widened. "You were drinking with him?"

"I only had a glass..he wanted to talk over a bottle of wine and..."

"And you LET him?!" Matt cried with strain in his high-pitched voice.

Alex flinched. "Please, Matt. Don't make me talk about this now...later, yes...but not now..." she looked up at him, tears falling from her cheeks. "Can you watch Salome?"

He looked away from her. "If you're driving his truck back there, then how are you going to get back?"

She shrugged. "I'll take a cab."

"Let me follow you. Please. Just in case he is there. We can call a sitter to watch Salome and I can follow you in your car or something. Just please don't go alone..." he pleaded with her. Despite how upset he was about her talking to Florian alone with alchohol involved, he was still too worried about her to just let her go.

Alex seemed to ponder it, surprised he didn't press further details about her drinking with her ex. "Okay..." she called her closest friend to come babysit for a couple of hours, and she was over in minutes. Salome didn't ask questions, and then they left for Florian's.

He wasn't home, much to Alex's relief. She went to Salome's room and retrieved the school supplies, then got in the passenger's seat of her car. Matt drove them home, stealing glances at Alex who still wore her tears on her face. He reached for her hand, squeezing it tightly. When they arrived back at her home, they just watched television with Salome all afternoon. Matt made them dinner, but Alex didn't eat much. Everyone remained quiet, even Salome. The ten-year-old insisted on sleeping with her mom again, and so Matt took the couch. Not that it mattered. He couldn't sleep anyways; his blood boiled with the possibility of what Florian had done to Alex. He couldn't wipe the memory of the bruises on Alex's face, or the tremor in her voice when she talked.

Apparantly, Alex couldn't sleep either. She scuttled into the living room, laying down beside Matt on the couch. He wrapped his arms around her, giving her the first real kiss since he arrived in LA. "Can't sleep?" he asked.

"Nightmares," she told him, shaking in his arms.

"I'll buy you a dream catcher," he whispered, rubbing her back. "Alex..."

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry for being so pushy earlier..." he began. "It's been driving me crazy not knowing what he did to you. I thought it couldn't be worse when I was on the plane but when I saw you...God, Alex, your face..."

She sighed. "He didn't hit me...he just held me really hard...I don't think he realized how rough he was being..."

Matt's stomach dropped. "How rough he was being?" he couldn't help but ask.

"I am going to tell you briefly, and you must promise not to overreact or try to hurt him. And rule eight, don't talk about it ever again after this unless I bring it up."

He nodded reluctantly, but he didn't object.

"He tried to rape me," her voice crack, and she felt his entire body stiffen at first, then shake.

"Tried?"

"I told him I had a boyfriend, and then he stopped."

Well, at least he had some decency. But that didn't exactly coat the situation with sugar. "But he touched you. That bastard fucking touched you!"

"Shh.." Alex wept softly into his neck, stroking his arms. "I'm okay."

"No you're not, Alex. You're having nightmares. You're hurt by it. He hurt you and he touched you and he VIOLATED you. You need to press charges!"

"I'm already dreading the custody battle. I don't have the heart to go through that, too. And like I said, he was drunk. I shouldn't have let him drink. It's my fault..."

It kind of was, on her part, but he didn't have the heart to tell her. He was too pissed at Florian. "Well if you don't press charges, I'm going to put the ever-living fear of GOD into him."

"Matt..."

"I'm going to talk to him, Alex. It's inevitable. I am going to let him know that you are mine and if he ever fucking touches one bloody CURL on your head ever again, I'm going to beat the shit out of him until he forgets his own damn name."

"Alright, alright...that's enough, Matt...please."

Matt heaved a long breath, kissing her forehead again and squeezing her tightly. He was not okay with this anymore than she was, and he didn't want to let her go. "Would it be inappropriate if I slept in the bed with you and Sal?"

She looked up at him. "I don't think she'd mind. As long as you sleep on my side."

He sighed with relief, picking her up and setting her down on her feet. They walked into the bedroom hand-in-hand, settling next to each other and sleeping with their fingers laced.


	21. Take Care

**Took me forever to update this chapter and yet it's so short. But I covered a lot of content in this small chapter. Sorry it took me so long. I'm kind of going through a break-up right now and I'm moving out so I've been in between houses with little computer access**.

**Also, THANK YOU FOR A HUNDRED + REVIEWS! :)**

* * *

The next day, Salome woke for school. She seemed a little confused to have Matt in the bed with her and mom, but they weren't touching other than the laced hands. She reached over and shook her mom's shoulder to wake her up. Alex was sleeping lightly, and woke up fast.

"First day of school, mom," Salome whispered.

"Mmhmm..go ahead and get dressed. Mummy will drive you when you're done."

"Okay," Salome ran to her bedroom to get ready, and Alex got up to take a shower. She was on edge, memories pouring over from the other night and she shut her eyes desperately to stop them. She showered countless times since it happened, desperate to remove the memories of Florian's touch that ghosted over her skin. Though the pain had faded from the bruises, she could still feel his fingers holding her face as he forced his lips onto hers. His mouth was like poison, his tongue a venomous snake. The thought of it made her shudder, and she tried desperately to push away what would have happened if she didn't tell him she was in a relationship. Granted, he was right, it wasn't anything they hadn't done before. But this was different. This was invasive and wrong. His touch was no longer gentle and thrilling; it was forceful and terrifying like a complete stranger was touching her. She felt so helpless under his strength, like a small animal being attacked by a tiger. Never in a thousand years would she suspect Florian to do something like this to her.

She took Salome to school, and by the time she arrived home, Matt was sitting on the couch reading one of the books she had lying around. They exchanged small talk, and he inquired what was on her agenda for the day. Not much, other than yoga at noon which he asked to come to.

Seeing him attempt to twist his gangly limbs like the rest of the class was amusing, and he was relieved to at least bring a smile to her face.

She was distant for a while. Salome began sleeping in her bed again but Matt stayed in Alex's. The couple didn't say much to one another, and for that she was grateful. He just held her at night, calmed her when she woke from nightmares, held her hand while watching princess movies with her daughter, brushed her hair and braided it when she got out of the shower. He cooked her meals and did her laundry, even helped her clean and continued to go to her yoga classes with her. He never asked for sex, and he wouldn't for a long time. He just took care of her like she needed taking care of, despite how emotionally cut off she was. She smiled more and more each day, though, and he could see the light coming back into her face when he looked at her. He was determined to never let anyone take that light away ever again.

* * *

Two weeks passed and Salome was at school. Alex was in the living room trying to help Matt with his yoga poses, when they heard a knock on the door. Alex's heart stopped. "Do you want me to get it?" Matt asked.

She gulped, shaking her head. "I can get it," she told him, rising from the floor and answering the door. Her heart started back up again with furious pounding when she saw Florian outside. Her eyes widened and her jaw tightened.

Matt heard a voice speaking in German and his fists clenched until his knuckles were white.

Florian asked her to not close the door, and to listen to him. She gave a short response, and Matt already never wanted to hear her speak German again.

He could tell, even through words he didn't understand, that Florian was very apologetic. The emotional strain in his voice told Matt he was crying, but Alex did not release any look of sympathy. When he was done begging her not to take his daughter, Alex looked down and seemed to think about it. She responded, and he thankfully reached out and tried to hug her. She stumbled back several steps, almost falling over, and Matt ran to her rescue. He slipped his hands around her waist, steadying her.

Florian's eyes widened as he saw this young man touching Alex in so tender of a way. "This!? This is who you're dating?!" he asked in English.

Alex's and Matt's eyes both shot to the man, who stared heartbrokenly at the two. "Yes, it is," Matt made note to say before Alex could stop him. "And how dare you try to touch her! The last thing she needs is you putting your hands on her."

"No, the last thing she needs is some boy half her age putting his hands on her!" Florian shot back angrily. Matt stepped forward, ready to punch him when Alex shot a threat to Florian in German and pulled Matt back by the arm.

"And you," Alex looked at her boyfriend sternly, her hand shaking as she gripped his arm. "I can handle myself."

"I realize you can handle yourself," Matt told her softly before looking back at Florian. "But I will not have some ass putting his hands on my girlfriend. Now I'll tell you this," he glared at Alex's ex-husband. "This BOY cares for Alex more than you EVER will, and this BOY will also put you in your place if you ever touch one curl on her head ever again."

Florian held Matt's gaze like fire colliding with ice, and the older man's mouth twitched as Matt threatened him. Obviously the threat Alex shouted must be enough to supress his temper. He bid Alex goodbye, then sauntered off to his truck with his fists curled.

Matt closed the door, looking back to her and clearing his throat.

"Satisfied?" Alex asked with crossed arms.

"Not unless I missed the part where I punched him in the face," Matt commented coldly, and she didn't appear to be amused. "What did you say to make him back off?" he asked, and her silence frightened him. She walked past him and sat on the couch, bringing her knees up to her face and hugging her legs close to her body. Matt followed her, sitting by her side and folding his hands. He looked at her in concern, a haunting frown on his lips.

"When he reached for a hug, it was to thank me for not filing for full custody..."

Matt's eyes widened. "Alex, _no_! Not filing charges, okay...but letting that bastard keep his custody privelages?!"

"He was drunk. And nothing happened. He stopped, didn't he? His judgement was clouded but he still stopped! He's not a bad person, Matt. This was all just a horrible mess and I'm fine. I'm okay," she tried to convince him, but the anger in his face did not wash away.

"I've been here with you this whole time, you are not okay! You are emotionally scarred because of this and the fool is lucky to be alive! He doesn't deserve to keep Salome after what he did to you!"

"Rule eight, Matthew," she said sternly, and he inhaled sharply. He rose to his feet, pacing around the room. Salome wasn't his daughter. He really had no say in this, but he was so angry. He didn't want his princess around that sorry excuse of a man, and it would cause Alex to have to be around him even more.

"I need to go," he said, scratching his head.

"To England?" Alex asked with a frown.

"No, I just need to take a walk," he said, and in seconds he was out the door.

Alex put her head in her hands, inhaling deeply.

Matt walked down the streets of Alex's neighborhood, running his hands through his hair and trying to clear his head. Just imagining what Florian did to Alex made him want to actually have a time machine so he could go back and kick Florian's ass. Even he could, though, he probably wouldn't because of Alex. She had a great image that she needed to uphold or it would affect not only her, but Salome as well. That was the last thing he wanted. As nice as Alex was, though, dropping the custody case was the last thing he wanted her to do. He cringed just picturing Salome being around her father again. Granted, everyone's done something they regret while drunk...but this was inhumane in Matt's mind. Just because they did it before didn't make it okay. Then he had to comment on Matt's age, which angered him even more. And he still wasn't completely okay with the fact that she allowed him in to drink, or that she was showing so much sympathy towards him. Then there was the fact that the only way she got him to stop was by saying she had a boyfriend. What if she didn't have a boyfriend? Would she have slept with him? Did she still love him?

It was the only explanation. If she didn't have a boyfriend, then they would have had sex the other night. That's how Florian looked at it, because he had no idea she had a boyfriend. He was drunk, couldn't think clearly enough to see that her struggling wasn't just her playing along with him. He thought if he kept on, then she would just give in and they'd have a great fuck because they still loved each other. That's how she was looking at it, it had to be. If it weren't for Matt, then it wasn't really rape and therefor he did nothing wrong. Why else would she sympathize so much with him? And could she really still love him?

He couldn't blame her if she did. Twelve years is a long time. It just doesn't go away so quickly

Matt's heart pounded and he stopped walking, realizing how much this hurt when he felt the hot tears rolling down his cheeks. If so many things weren't going wrong, he might would realize how he felt about Alex. But the anger and hurt supressed his affections, and he still tried to focus on the fact that he needed to be there for Alex despite how upset he was.

* * *

She honestly didn't expect him to be back any time soon, if he came back at all. He came through the doors, limbs stiff and face worn. He looked so...tired.

"Are you okay, Matty?" Salome looked up from her homework.

"Yeah, poppet. I'm fine," he forced a smile, kissing her on the top of her head. Now when he looked at Salome, all he could think about was how much he didn't want her to be around Florian. "Where's your mum?"

"She's in her room..." Salome said sadly.

"Alright. I'm going to check on her," he said, walking back to Alex's bedroom.

He walked in the room, immediately noticing how much shorter her hair was.

She looked up at him, the light that Matt worked so hard to get back being completely gone again.

"You cut all of your hair off," he sighed, reaching out and grabbing a handful of the hair that now barely reached the middle of her neck.

Really, it was her way of dealing with stress. She told an interviewer once that it was sort of her way of mutilating herself. She nodded, not bothering to ask if he liked it because she could tell my the disappointment in his voice that he hated it. She felt his nose press against her cheek, his tender hand rubbed the back of her head and his other hand grabbed hers. She didn't understand how he could be so tender when she was such a mess.

"I think you should go back to Cardiff," she told him cooly.

Matt pulled away, looking into her eyes sadly. "Alex..."

"It's not fair to you that you're trying so hard to put me back together. I'm such a mess right now, Matt. You deserve to be happy, and-"

"Alex, shut up," he told her, grabbing the sides of her face. "I want to help. I want to be here for you. Being around you makes me happy."

"Not when I'm like this. You're upset, and I can tell. Besides, people are going to notice if you stay here much longer."

"I've done told you, Alex, I don't car-"

"You don't, but I do," she said sternly. "Please don't argue with me on this. Book the soonest flight you can."

Matt's heart felt heavy in his chest. "Okay," he told her, laying down on the bed and closing his eyes shut.

Tears fell from Alex's eyes and she kept her back to him while she pretended to sleep. She felt like it was over.


	22. Dress Up

**This is going to be an eventful chapter, to say the least. Would like to thank all my lovely reviewers!**

* * *

The last thing Matt wanted to do was board this flight. His heart ached from the time he got off the plane til he sank into his bed. For the next few days, he just tried to shake the double-jetlag by sleeping. It also helped ease the fact that Alex was barely speaking to him. Their communication was cut down to occasional morning Skype calls and even then, Matt just mostly spoke to Salome with Alex sulking in the background.

Alex knew this was over. She was a complete mess. It didn't help when she let Florian start taking Salome every other week and she was left in the house alone. Her bed felt like the middle of the ocean, and she was a drowning fish. She missed having Matt around to take care of her, but she was too stubborn to allow him to continue even if she needed it. With their scarce contact, she was expecting to get a call from him any day now saying he wanted to stay friends.

She thought she would be able to handle this. She had prepared herself for it, even built up a wall around her heart so that it wouldn't hurt this bad. But the four words on her phone caused her stomach to drop and her entire body to feel cold.

_We need to talk._

* * *

It had been four weeks since he saw her. Four weeks and she had barely spoken to him; it cut him so deeply he could hardly stand it. He'd go to a party with friends and end up in the corner thinking about Alex. Girls would hang all over him and he would send them away. All he wanted was his girlfriend, and she was so emotionally cut off that he couldn't reach her no matter how many oceans he crossed.

So sitting by himself at a bar, he typed in the words. It was still morning for her, and he knew she saw it.

A day passed and she didn't respond. He tried calling her, but she didn't answer.

It wasn't until the day after that when she finally called back.

"Alex?" Matt answered his phone breathlessly.

"You said we needed to talk," she cut straight to the chase, and he could tell in her voice that she was crying.

"Yes...we do... can I see your face?" he asked, already turning on his computer.

"You don't want to," she answered simply.

"I always want to. Every minute of every passing day I crave to just be able to see you," he told her, looking down.

His words hit her like a bus, making her heart jump and flutter. "...so you're not ending this?"

Matt's eyes widened. "God! No! Alex, why would you-"

"Normally when someone says they want to talk..." she began, but he cut her off.

"I meant that I literally want to talk to you. Just talk. Like we're doing now. I know you're hurt and I know you need your space but it empties my soul every day I have to go without talking to you."

She put her hand over her mouth, then slid it down to her heart. He cared this bloody much for her?

"Do you want this to end?" he asked in a heartbreaking whimper.

"N-no," Alex answered with tears in her eyes.

Matt smiled in relief. "Can I please look at you?"

Alex opened Skype and made a noise of approval. Matt beamed and started the call. When Alex appeared on the screen, all he saw were her hands hiding her face, and her short brunette curls popping out everywhere.

"Alex," Matt said sternly, wishing he could take her by the wrists and pull her hands down. "Let me see you, love."

Alex slid her hands down sheepishly. Her face was very red and tear-stained, like she had been crying for a while. She kept her head down, avoiding his gaze.

"You look beautiful," he told her, and she smiled.

"Thank you," Alex finally looked up at him. He looked even rougher than she did. Dark circles sat under his eyes, and he looked like he hadn't slept for days.

"Oh, look at what I bought!" Matt reached over and grabbed a DVD, waving it at the webcam. Alex laughed when she saw "Yoga For Beginners" written on the cover. She realized it was the first time she laughed in over a month.

"You're serious about this, aren't you?!" she cried. "People are going to start to think you're gay! The flower headbands, the heart-shaped ring, now yoga?"

"And the fact that I haven't been caught within ten meters of a girl in months," he added.

"Key words, you haven't been caught," Alex raised her eyebrows with a smile.

Matt grinned devilishly. "We're sneaky."

"Indeed. We could keep this up forever."

"Please don't make me wait that long."

Alex laughed, but Matt looked at her seriously. He wanted the whole damn world to know. "Maybe one day," she told him, and at that he smiled.

"I missed you," he breathed, running his hands through his floppy hair.

"I missed you, too," she replied with a small smirk.

"So you got any auditions lined up yet?" he asked.

Her face fell and she looked at her hands. "I'm not going to do pilot season this year..."

"Alex, what?! Why?" he asked, brows furrowing in confusion. Her silence said it all. She was not by any means in an emotional state to work right now. Matt sighed, scratching the back of his head. "So you're just taking some time off until you come back to Doctor Who?"

Alex nodded. "I just need a break.." she put her head in her hands.

"You look like you need one," he agreed, his fingertips touching the computer screen where her face was.

She smiled, so relieved that they were alright now.

* * *

It didn't take long for them to slip back into their flirty, giggly conversations. They both sodding adored one another and it became harder to hide it. And more difficult to keep away.

A month passed and Matt was bouncing on the balls of his feet with excitement. He got a call do to a Craig Ferguson interview on October 17th. It'd be the perfect opportunity to see Alex again.

"Hello, sweetie!" she answered his phone call. "What are you doing?"

"About to watch the Wedding of River Song," he answered with a small smile.

Alex bit her lip and grinned. That episode would always have a special place in her heart. "Our wedding."

"Yep. You know, you're my first on-screen wife," he told her, propping his feet on the coffee table.

"Am I?" Alex asked sheepishly. "I can't say the same for you, love. I'm sort of an on-screen whore."

"Yes, I know. Five husbands in Moll alone!" he laughed. "It's alright. I'm interested to see my family's reaction to the episode."

"Your mum will love it, since she loves the Doctor and River together."

"All I'm going to be thinking about is the outtakes," he chuckled.

"Mmhmm, yes...that was when this all started," Alex remembered the day in her trailer well.

"Even though you tore me in two that day," he remarked.

"Only two? I was going for three," she teased.

"Oh, shut up Kingston," he scoffed with a smile.

"Make me," she purred, sending a shiver of nerves through his stomach.

"I will in a couple of weeks, love."

"...what do you mean?"

"I'm going to be on Craig again! So you know what that means?!"

"You're going to embarass yourself on national television?" she laughed.

Matt's eyes narrowed. "No, Kingston, I'm going to come see you!"

She beamed, her heart racing with excitement that she was going to see him again. "You shouldn't have told me, darling. Now these next two weeks are going to go by so slow!"

"So you want me to surprise you from now on?" he asked with a smile, his heart fluttering at her anticipation of seeing him.

"I do like surprises," she answered, twirling a curl in her hand. "Rule number nine...always surprise me when you come see me."

He beamed. "Duely noted," he told her, before hearing the knock on the door. "Ah. That would be my guests arriving... you gonna watch the episode tonight?"

"Of course."

"Call me when it's over. Tell the princess Matty misses her!"

"Duely noted," she replied, before wishing him goodbye. She hung up the phone, her mouth tingling with nerves and her mind racing with anticipation. It really was going to be a long two weeks.

* * *

**October 7th, 2011**

"What are you wearing for halloween?"

The question caught her off guard, to say the least. Alex lay snugly under her covers, phone next to her ear. She raised her eyebrows, unsure of what to say other than, "Clothes."

"Just normal clothes?" Matt's mouth fell open and his nose crinkled up in almost-disgust.

"Yes, Matthew. What else would I wear?" she asked with a laugh.

"It's halloween! You're supposed to wear a costume!" he insisted.

She threw her head back into the pillow and laughed hard. "I'm forty-eight! I don't dress for halloween anymore!"

"That's rubbish! You're never too old to dress up for halloween!"

She rolled her eyes. "What would you like me to wear, darling?" she inquired.

Matt grinned, naughty thoughts running through his mind. "Something sexy," he replied in a low, seductive tone.

The way he said that made the nerves bubble against her stomach, and she bit her lip. Due to the incident with Florian, it had been months since they had sex, and her body ached with need. "I'm taking Salome trick-or-treating! I'm not walking out of the house in something I bought from a sex shop!" she told him. "But, I could put on a special costume for you after I put her to bed."

Arousal rushed through him and he was at a loss for words. "L..like what?" he finally managed to mutter, his fingers tapping against his tingling stomach.

"I know how much you love me in period costume," she purred.

"Yes," he gasped, and she chuckled at the noise.

"Perhaps Marie Antoinette-style lingerie, complete with an intricate fan, my curls spilling over my shoulders..." she began.

He gulped loud enough for her to hear, the mental image clear in his mind.

"Or maybe something a little more kinky. Those naughty nurses and French maids are pretty popular..."

"Fuck. Kingston.."Matt groaned, his jeans strangling the growing erection. He moved his hands down and unbuttoned them so that he was free.

"What would you do to me if I were to wear something of that nature?" she asked, her voice demanding. She slid her nightie up her thighs, her hand slipping beneath her knickers.

"Push you against a bloody wall," he growled, stroking himself as he heard her moan over the phone. "I'd kiss you hard and rub my hands all over you."

She dipped her fingers in herself with another moan, imagining his mouth on hers and his hands running over her body. "Keep going."

"Whatever costume you wore, it wouldn't matter. Because it'd end up on the floor. I'd rip it off of you and take you to the bed. I'd kiss every inch of your beautiful skin, my lips would linger even longer and more passionately over your nipples. I'd suck and lick them until they were hard and swollen like my cock."

"Mmh, darling..." Alex pressed herself against her own touch, setting the phone down and putting it on speaker as she used her free hand to caress her breast.

"I want you so much Alex," he breathed into the phone. "I want to make you wet and slide my fingers in you."

She moaned his name, her back arching as she worked her fingers over herself. "Please don't stop," she gasped.

He dragged his teeth over his bottom lip, beating his length rapidly. "I want to be inside you, baby. I'm so hard for you."

"I'm so wet for you," she replied. "I need you to fuck me."

He groaned, imagining himself over her, bathed in sweat and pushing into her hard. The mental image almost sent him over the edge already. "I remove my fingers and replace them with my cock. I thrust hard into you, moaning your name."

Alex turned her face, breathing heavily into the phone. "Yes, Matt..God...yes!"

"I pound hard and fast into you, dipping down and biting your neck just where you like it. That little invisible spot that makes your toes curl."

"Fuck...Matt...uh..." her moans became louder and her hips rose into the air. She screamed as quietly as possible, her orgasm racking through her violently.

The sound of her made him come with her, and he smiled into the phone. "Did you?" he asked, knowing full well that she did.

"Oh yes," she panted, smiling and picking up the phone. "You."

"Yeah...that was..."

"Same thing tomorrow?" she asked with a smirk.

He smiled. "Can't wait."

* * *

**October 13th, 2011**

He arrived a little earlier than expected. The anticipation was killing both of them and there was an earlier flight to LA available, so he took it. He didn't have to be on Craig until the 17th, and he planned on staying until Alex kicked him out again.

The knock on Alex's door made her jump from the couch like a teenager. She rushed to the door, opening it and slinging herself at Matt. He dropped his bags and held her, swinging her in his arms. "Mwah! Mwah! Mwah!" he pressed kisses on the side of her head, squeezing her tightly.

She laughed wildly at his antics, pulling back and pressing a firm kiss to his lips. He slid his hands up to her shoulder blades, and her arms lifted so that she was clasping both sides of his face. She opened her mouth in an early invitation, and he accepted with eagerness. He moaned into her mouth, his tongue dancing against hers. She rolled his bottom lip between her teeth, eliciting a groan from both parties. He shoved her against the wall, completely forgetting the open door and the bags left outside. She gasped, wrapping one of her legs around him and dragging him as close as possible. She grinded his leg against the insides of her thighs, and the feeling of her heat made him hard. "Alex," he pulled from her, panting slightly.

"Oh! Your bags!" she realized, rushing to help him pick them up. She bent down, and he got a perfect view of her marvelous bum in those dark-wash jeans she was wearing. He couldn't help but smack her ass and she screeched. "MATTHEW!"

"Oh, hush, Kingston. No one's around," he grinned, grabbing his bags and carrying them to the bedroom.

She laughed. "I've missed you."

He turned around after setting his bags down, drawing her close to him once more. "And I have missed you, Alexandra Elizabeth Kingston," he whispered, brushing her brunette curls away from her face. She beamed. "Salome at school?" he asked, and she nodded.

"Mmmh, well in that case..." he picked her up and she laughed, her legs flying out behind her. He set her down on the bed, kissing her firmly. He pulled away, wanting to make sure that it was really okay. She noticed the hesitancy in his eyes and smiled, beginning to unbutton his shirt. Her eyes danced with desire and that was all he needed before he finally took her.

* * *

Salome was overjoyed to have Matt around again. He and her mom seemed happier than ever, and it made the little girl equally as happy. Matt often helped her with her homework, and since Salome was going to be in a school play he often helped her with her lines.

"Blimey, you're talented," Matt told her as she practiced her final scene. "You're going to have your drama teacher contacting every performing arts school in the country!"

Salome giggled. "I get it from mom," she said, hugging onto her mom's waist.

Alex grinned wide, running her fingers through her daughter's hair. "I'm so proud of you, sweetie."

"Are you going to come to the play, Matty?!" Salome cried, running up to him and tugging on his shirt. Matt looked up at Alex, his lips falling open slightly.

"I'm sure we can get you in and out of there without anyone noticing. It's just a school play," Alex waved it off, and Matt hugged her tightly.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" he cried, before pulling away and doing a happy twirl.

Salome jumped up and down with delight, happy to have Matt come watch her.

Alex laughed and rolled her eyes at her man-child. "But as soon as the play is over, we have to leave. Salome, you can't show Matt off to all your little friends who have a crush on him, okay?"

"People have crushes on me?!" Matt's mouth fell open with delight.

Alex shot him a look. "Ten year old girls, Matthew."

Matt frowned. That didn't really count.

"Yeah, all of my friends that I got into Doctor Who ended up liking you A LOOOOT," Salome told him. "But I don't think any of them are coming to the play, so I think we're good."

"Alright, princess. Can't wait to see it," Matt kissed the top of her head. "Want to run through your lines again?"

Salome nodded vigorously, and they went at it again.

The school production of _Peter Pan _was beautiful. Salome made a such a perfect Wendy that Alex had to remind herself it was her own daughter. When the play ended, the actors all received a standing ovation. Matt clapped loudly and frantically, beaming proudly at Salome.

Salome skipped back stage to change out of her costume.

"You did a great job!"

Salome turned around to see a couple of girls a grade ahead of her standing in her dressing room.

"Um...thank you.." Salome said politely, managing a nervous smile.

"Yeah, but one of us would have done a better job," the second girl added with a scowl. "Because we're older and better than YOU."

Salome backed up a little bit, her lips falling open. She was rendered speechless.

"Too bad we don't have a famous mom to get us whatever we want," the first girl stepped uncomfortably close to Salome.

"I..I auditioned for it..." Salome defended herself, backing herself against the wall.

"Yeah, so did we. But we didn't get it because Mrs. Hampton wanted_ Alex Kingston's_ daughter to play Wendy. You didn't get the part cuz you were good."

"Yeah, I mean look at you," the second girl stepped close to Salome as well. "You're so little."

"I think you should have gotten the part of the dog!" the first girl added.

The second girl laughed. "Yeah, you look like one too. SIT, doggy!" she pushed Salome onto the floor.

"Good dog," the first girl laughed, then suddenly cried out in pain when Salome bit her leg.

"WHAT THE HECK?!" she cried.

Salome rose from the ground, pushing the second girl out of her way before running out of the room, still in her costume.

"YOU FREAK!" the girls called after her, the second one tending to the blood on the first one's leg. Salome kept running, tears falling from her eyes.

"Woah, woah, princess what's wrong?!" Matt scooped the little girl into his arms as she ran up to him in the waiting room of the auditorium. Salome cried into his shoulder.

Alex's eyes widened. "Salome, baby...what's wrong?!" she patted her daughter's back and pulled on the blue ribbon in her hair.

"I don't want to talk about it... let's just go!" she cried.

Matt looked at Alex, who was ridden with worry. "Alright," Alex said, and Matt carried her to the car.

"Tell us what happened," Matt said, sitting with Salome in the back seat as Alex drove.

Salome shook her head, refusing. "I'm okay."

"Sweetie, no you're not," Alex told her harshly. "Was it the play? You have nothing to cry about, you did a great job."

The stone expression on Salome's face let Matt know that it wasn't really about the play.

Matt and Alex tried to coax an answer out of her the whole ride home, but she wouldn't budge. Matt reached to grab her out of the car but she jumped out on her own, running towards the door.

Alex opened it, and she ran to her bedroom. Alex put her hands over her mouth, looking at Matt. "I don't know what to do," she whispered.

"Here, you go out for ice cream and I'll try to talk to her, okay?" Matt told Alex. She nodded reluctantly and headed to the store.

Matt walked back to Salome's room, sitting next to her on the bed. She was laying down with the covers over her head. "Salome, poppet...I know you're upset. Please just tell me what's wrong?"

She was silent for a while, before answering, "I don't want mommy to know."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't want her to fix it for me. It'd just make it worse."

"Make what worse?"

"...back in my dressing room...two girls...they...they..." she told Matt the story, and Matt had never been so angry at two kids in his whole life. He was bullied in school for his ears and odd personality, so he didn't take bullying lightly.

"They had no right to even talk to you like that, let alone touch you. They're just jealous. You got that part because you are sodding brilliant. Okay?" he watched as she nodded. "And you definitely don't look like a dog. You look like your mum, and you and I both know she's one of the most gorgeous women in the world."

Salome smiled at that.

"We're going to do something about this. Do you know their names?"

"Sadie Hartwick and Felicity Chastang. They're a year older than me but they're really popular. Everyone knows who they are."

"Well everyone's about to know what big meanies they are."

"What are you going to do?" Salome asked.

"I'm going to do what my parents did. Tell the person in charge."

Later that night, Matt told Alex what happened. She was absolutely furious, but she was glad that they were able to cheer Salome up with ice cream and he managed to get her to talk to him about it. But authority figures were going to be notified indeed.

* * *

**October 31st, 2011**

"Come on, Kingston, let me see it!" Matt crossed his arms as he waited for Alex to come out of the bathroom.

"I'm really unsure about this wig," she came out, dressed as a knock-out worthy Jessica Rabbit. She laughed as soon as she saw his Roger Rabbit costume. He looked completely ridiculous, having opted for a full-on head mask.

"Yowzah!" he said as he saw her in that red dress, her ginger wig flowing past her shoulders. She looked stunning.

"Glad you like it," she flipped her hair with another laugh.

"Let's go get the princess, shall we?!" Matt grabbed Alex's gloved hand and walked into the living room. Salome had decided to be Wendy for halloween since she was Wendy in the play, and she looked adorable as ever. They went trick-or-treating, sharing laughter and eating candy shamelessly.

When they got home and put Salome to bed, Alex did as promised.

She decided on the French maid lingerie.


	23. Holidays

**Sorry for the hiatus! Things have been a wee bit crazy! **

* * *

Matt left on the first of November, his family growing curious about his prolonged stay in America. It pained him to leave Alex, especially since they were so happy together.

They called each other even more now, since they both had so much free time. When Salome was with Florian, they would just sit down on Skype and talk all day.

"You have Craig tomorrow," Matt noted on one of those particular days, remembering when he had suggested to Craig Ferguson that he should get Alex on the show again. The Late Show host was ecstatic to arrange such a thing, and so he scheduled her exactly a month after Matt's interview.

"Yes, I do," Alex replied with a smile. "Here we go again!"

Matt laughed. "Am I going to hear more conversations about your vibrator?"

Alex blushed. "NO!"

"Eh, I'm sure Craig will weasel something out of you. Just try not to get banned from television, Alex," he had a smug grin on his face, and she just wanted to kiss it off.

"Me? Banned from television? Oh, they wouldn't. They love me too much," Alex dramatically touched her heart, rolling her eyes in a typical diva fashion.

"It's the hair," Matt told her, eyeing her shoulder-length curls.

Alex fluffed her hair before saying, "Besides, my daughter's teachers are going to be watching so I have to behave myself."

"The Kingston behave herself? Miss triple-threat-in-the-privacy-of-her-bedroom? I think not," Matt bit his lip, memories of their time in the bedroom crossing his mind. By the look on Alex's face, she was thinking the same thing.

"Oh, hush you!" was all she could say, blushing terribly. "Shouldn't you be getting some sleep?"

"Probably. But sleeping isn't nearly as appealing as talking to you," he smiled sweetly and she blushed.

"Still. It's a necessity. I'm turning off my computer now and forcing you to sleep."

"But bab-"

"No buts," she raised an eyebrow at him, still smiling playfully. "Goodnight, sweetie."

He sighed. "Goodnight. Sweet dreams."

"You too," she said, before the call ended.

Matt sighed, laying in his bed and falling quickly to sleep.

* * *

It was a couple of days before Matt saw the interview, but when Alex opened Skype that day she knew by the wide grin on his face that he had seen it.

"Oh God," she said, hiding her face in her hands. "You saw it didn't you?"

"_Ohh, I've BEEN in his bathroom, and it doesn't smell like that_!" he teased her, and she sunk further into her chair. "Are you trying to give us away now, Kingston?"

"It just came out! You know how Craig is!" Alex peaked through her fingers. Matt was chuckling behind his hand. "I covered it up!"

"_I will smell him_!" he continued to tease her. "You might as well jump on Oprah's couch and declare yourself my girlfriend!"

"I was trying to throw them off the scent!" she finally removed her face from her hands, and Matt began to laugh at the clever pun.

"I see what you did there!" he looked down at his keyboard, still grinning madly.

"Besides, I doubt that anyone would ever fathom that this would happen...you and I," she insisted, tugging on her curls.

"You never know. We might be one of those ship thingies."

"What?!"

"You know... those things...where...where people...ack! I can't explain it... It's like how people pair the Doctor and River together," he linked his hands together. "Or Amy and Rory together. And they call it 'shipping.' I learned it at Comic Con!"

"Ohh...so we have...a ship?" she asked, not quite understanding.

"Perhaps. Maybe someone ships us," he smiled at the thought.

"Salome certainly does!" Alex laughed. "Which is funny, because I always thought she would object if I were to move on."

"I think she likes seeing you happy," Matt shrugged, before getting a worried look on his face. "You..are happy...right?"

Alex bit her lip and smiled. "Completely and incandescently," she responded.

Matt beamed brighter than ever. "Same," he responded, and for a long while they just stared at each other through the screen with big smiles on their faces.

* * *

**November 30th, 2011**

"Maaaaattttt!"

Matt wasn't accustomed to her acting so excited, so he knew when she called him and shrieked his name loudly that something big was going on.

"Yes?" he asked with a nervous chuckle. He was sitting in the corner of a coffee shop, trying not to draw attention.

"I got a call for a part!" she cried, bouncing up and down.

"What? I thought...I thought you weren't doing pilot season this year?" he asked.

"I'm not! But the producers of this show are massive _Doctor Who_ fans and they want me to come audition!" she beamed.

"Are you going to take the offer?" he asked.

"I really want to. The audition is in a few days. Sort of short notice, but I'm so ready to work again."

"Take it. You'll blow them away."

She smiled even wider. "Thank you, sweetie...I think I'll call them back now!"

"Good luck!" he told her, before she bid him goodbye.

* * *

**December 17th, 2011**

The streets of LA were brightly lit with Christmas decor, so busy that Alex could walk the town unnoticed.

"What are you getting Matty?" Salome asked, holding onto her mother's hand tightly.

Alex looked down at her daughter with a small smile. "I don't know! I can't think of anything."

"You should just wrap us up and send it to him!" Salome suggested with a big smile.

Alex laughed. "I'm sure he'd love that. But he's very busy."

"I know, I know...big family Christmas trip, yay them," Salome rolled her eyes playfully.

"You are getting so sassy!" Alex looked at her daughter with her mouth ajar.

Salome giggled, seemingly pleased with herself. "You should get him something from both of us," she suggested.

Suddenly, she sounded so grown up. Alex looked at her daughter, much taller now. Her face wasn't so child-like anymore, and neither was her voice. She would be eleven in just three months time. She was growing up so fast.

"Mom...are you okay?" Salome asked, noting the way her mother's eyes watered.

"Yes...yes, I'm fine," she smiled, wrapping her arm around her little girl's shoulders. "How about we go into there?" she pointed to a music store. "He does need a new guitar!"

Salome agreed, and they walked into the shop together.

* * *

Matt's family Christmas trip was going...well, as good as it could. He was surrounded by almost every family member of his, all interested in his career. He answered so many questions that it was like being at Comic Con, only without the costumes. He hardly found time to break away to talk to Alex and Salome.

When he finally found alone time, he took it upon himself to wrap Alex's present.

"Who's THAT thing for?" Laura came into the room, eyeing the ridiculous thing with a curious smile.

Matt nearly fell over, and he stumbled to get back to his feet. "Uh...no one!" he cried, hiding it with his body. Which was a fail, because it was too big.

Laura pushed him aside, getting a closer look at it. "For someone special, then?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "They have interesting tastes"

"Will you...no..away...get away from it!" he waved his hands about frantically and she laughed at him.

"I'm not going to break it! See, I'm not even touching it!" she teased, holding her fingers just barely above it.

"Lor, now is not the time to be a bratty sister!" he grabbed her shoulders and wheeled her out of the room.

"Oh come on! Just tell me who it's for! I wont' tell anyone!" she stopped her feet from moving any further, and closed the door so that no one could hear.

Matt took in a deep breath, rolling his eyes at her.

"Is it for a woman?" she asked, her eyes widening.

Matt nodded.

"Are you romantically involved with this woman?" she asked.

He nodded once more.

Laura shrieked, throwing her arms around his neck and causing him to stumble back several steps. "I knew it! I knew it! I knew it! Mum knew it, too!"

"This doesn't leave this room!" Matt reminded her sternly.

"Right. Of course," she pulled back, looking him up-and-down. "So who's it for?"

He put his hands on his hips, looking down at the floor. "...It's for Alex...Alex Kingston."

* * *

"I told Laura..." Matt admitted almost as soon as he got on the phone that night.

Alex's heart jumped and her eyes widened a bit. She was silent.

"Are you angry?" he asked.

"No...just a little surprised. She's the only one you told?"

"Yes. She promised not to say anything."

"What did she say when you told her?"

"She was a bit shocked at first. Like a deer in headlights, really. She was more upset at the fact we've been together since April and we haven't said anything. But, I think she understood because she smiled and said she was happy for us."

"Didn't try to talk you out of it?" she asked.

"Nope."

Alex smiled. "I hope the rest of your family takes it that well."

"I hope so too...because I want to tell them soon." She opened her mouth to respond, but he stopped her with his own words. "I want to wait til you're here with me, of course. I want us to tell them together."

Her silence scared him a bit, but finally she responded. "We'll tell them the next time I'm in England. By the way, I sent your Christmas present today. It'll arrive at your normal address."

"I'll still be in France until the 26th. I've sent yours, too."

"Ah, well. I'll be home," she smirked. "What did you get Salome?"

"Wait til you get it," he said. "Anyway, I'm knackered. I'll talk to you when I can, okay?"

"Alright. Sleep well."

"Sweet dreams, Kingston, I..." he stopped himself, his mouth falling ajar as he almost said it. "I miss you," he quickly covered up.

"I miss you too. Night."

When she hung up, he stared wide-eyed at the ceiling. He almost told Alex he loved her.

He was in love with Alex Kingston.

* * *

Salome flew from her bedroom Christmas morning, smiling at the presents underneath the tree. "MOOOMMM!" she cried, running to her mother's bedroom and jumping on the bed for her to wake up.

"Wake up! Wake up! It's Christmas!"

"Mmh, good morning, sweetie," Alex groaned tiredly, rising and patting the side of her daughter's face. "Ready to open your presents?"

Salome nodded vigorously, and they laughed. Alex carried Salome to the living room, setting her down in front of the tree. She opened her presents from all of her aunts and uncles in Europe, happy to receive each one.

Her mom bought her a Wii, a new camera, several new clothes, and some of her favorite movies. Salome hugged her mom tightly to thank her.

"This is for you, mum," Salome tapped on the large present that couldn't even fit under the tree. "It's from Matty!"

"Oh, goodness..." Alex began to unwrap the gift. When she opened the box, she gasped. "Oh...my..." she brought the brand new accordion out of the box. "It's beautiful!" she cried, skimming her hands over the body of it. "Oh, Matt..."

"There's something else in the box, too," Salome grabbed a piece of paper and began to read. "Bernard Jenkins, accordion and piano lessons."

Alex smiled at the note on the back. "He paid for a year's worth of lessons...he's so wonderful," she gushed, hugging her accordion.

"I want to open Matt's present for me!" Salome scrambled for it. It was a very, very tiny box but she was still just as excited to open it.

"Mom..."

"Sweetie?"

"Mom..."

"Yes? What is it?" Alex leaned over, gasping a bit.

"Are those what I think they are?"

Alex nodded. "They're tickets. To Disney World."

Salome screamed and ran around the house. "THANK YOU MATTTTYYY!" she cried to the cieling, Alex laughing behind her.

She had the most wonderful boyfriend in the entire world.

* * *

"Did you and Salome like your gifts?" he asked on the phone later that evening.

"We loved them. It definitely made up for the fact that we had a very small Christmas this year. She wanted to thank you herself, but she knew that you're busy and she's at her dad's now."

"She can thank me later."

"I was surprised to see the accordion. I think that's the most thoughtful thing anyone's ever done for me."

"And you're going to go to the lessons?"

"Well, you paid for a year's worth so I'm sort of stuck, aren't I?"

"Is that a bad thing?" he asked.

"No. It's wonderful. Absolutely wonderful. I wish I could say in words how happy I am. Just...thank you."

He smiled wide. "You're welcome. I'll get yours when I go back to Cardiff tomorrow."

"Ah, well...I hope you love it as much as I love mine. Actually, what we got for one another is fairly ironic."

"Why do you say that?" he asked.

She smirked. "Spoilers."

And indeed it was ironic, because they both got one another musical instruments. Alex had her accordion and now Matt was the proud owner of a TARDIS blue guitar.


	24. Romantic Shenanigans

**So sorry for the hiatus AGAIN. College has started back up and um I'm dying. I can't even begin to even. I should actually be doing my chemistry homework right now lololol.**

**It's been so long since I updated that you guys MIGHT wanna re-read last chapter before you read this one.**

**But can I just say that this chapter was probably my FAVORITE to write. I hope you all enjoy it, too. Thanks for all the support (despite my hiatuses.)**

**And please enjoy my new cover image ! :))))**

* * *

Doctor Who began filming again in January. "Karen and the Babes" had a joyous reunion; it was great to work together again. But Matt needed Karen's particular advice.

"So, wha' did ye want to talk about?" Karen plopped down beside Matt in his trailer after a long day's worth of filming. He handed her a cup of tea, sipping his own and running a finger through his newly cut hair.

"I love her."

Karen's eyes widened and she nearly spat out her tea. Nearly. "You love Alex?!"

Matt nodded.

"When did you realize that?" she asked, crossing her legs and staring at him attentively.

"Really, I think I've loved her for months. But this is the first time I've said something aloud..." he released a deep breath.

"Annnnd? How does it feel?"

He grinned. "Great, to finally get it off my chest at least...but...I..I don't know what I'm going to do."

"What do ye mean?"

"I can't...we have rules, you see. I can't tell her I love her until she says it first," he tried to explain, using his wild hand gestures.

"Ah...well...just wait for her t' say it then," she answered with a shrug, sipping her tea.

"It's been _months_, Kazza. I thought she would have said it by now."

"Maybe she's just scared. She's been hurt a lot...can't be easy for her to put her heart on the line again."

"I know, I know..." Matt said, bouncing his knees up and down.

Karen reached over and stilled his shaking hands. "You're gonna spill yer tea!" she told him with a laugh. "Calm down. Maybe she jus' needs...you know...a little push? Valentines day is coming up. Go visit her. Sweep her off her feet. Do something really romantic for her, and maybe she'll realize she loves you."

"Kaz, you're a genius!" Matt smiled, but his smile quickly faltered and confusion crossed his features. "...what can I do that's really romantic?"

Karen laughed hard. "Oh, Matt. Yer gonna 'ave t' think about that yourself! That's the point of being romantic! You have over a month to come up with something, and if you really love her like you say you do then it should just come to you. You know, like rain comes from the clouds."

Matt sighed. "Thanks, Karen."

"No problem...and Matt?"

"Yes?"

She beamed, setting her tea down and hugging him tightly. "I'm really happy for you."

* * *

The days on the set of _Arrow _were always so long, primarily because it took so much time to get Alex's hair straight. But the cast members were so lovely and fun to be around, so it was always a pleasure. Also, Alex quite enjoyed the company of John Barrowman. The trouble those two got into was absolutely ridiculous. Often they'd just sit down and talk for hours about the River Song and Captain Jack spin-off that they so desperately wanted.

Alex stood on set after finishing her last scene as Dinah Lance, for now. The crew members complimented her on her performance and she engaged in small talk, smiling brightly. She was glowing, loving that she was able to act again. Though the happiness that showed on her face was not only from working. It sort of helped that she had a wonderful boyfriend who called her beautiful several times a day, kept in close contact even though they were so far away, and made her laugh like an audience member of a sitcom.

The long distance was getting more difficult, though. She hadn't seen him since he left in November and sometimes the house was just too lonely, especially when Salome stayed with Florian. Keeping up with one another through technology just wasn't simply enough. She needed his touch, feel his lips against hers, have his gangly arms wrapped around her. She was amazed, however, at how strong he stayed. She didn't know many men who could keep a long distance relationship, and she thought surely a man as dashing as Matt would move on to an easier and less complicated relationship. However, he assured her of his ardent feelings each day. Little did she know how much he was holding back.

"KINGSTON!"

The unmistakable tone of Matt's voice rang through the set, and Alex whipped around to see him storming towards her, face full of anger.

"WHO DID IT?!" he shot, the cast and crew staring at him in confusion.

No one was more confused than Alex, however, who had no idea that he was coming (well, she told him to surprise her from now on) and had no clue why he was so angry. Her mouth gaped open, her script falling from her hands and parading over the floor.

"I AM GOING TO KILL THEM! WHO. DID. IT?!" he finally caught up to her, and now he was only a foot away from his girlfriend. His enraged expression had not wavered, and she stared at him with absolute terror in her eyes.

"Wh-what?" she finally managed to form words.

"Who. Straightened. Your. HAIR?!" he asked, not breaking character.

Her brows raised, and the corners of her mouth began to twitch into a smile. "God, you're ridiculous!" she cried, picking her script off the ground. "I thought you were actually angry!"

"I am!" he told her, but he couldn't help but smile a bit. He took a strand of her hair. "No one should ever straighten your beautiful goddess curls."

"It's for a role, Matthew," she rolled her eyes, then looked around. People were still staring at them in confusion. "And hello, by the way! Come on, let's go to my trailer."

He watched as her hips swayed back-and-forth as she walked, and he bit his lip in slight arousal. This woman did this to him on purpose. He followed behind her, not saying a word. When they finally got into the trailer, the door shut, they were on one another in seconds.

Alex flung herself towards him, fingers winding into his hair and her mouth crashing like waves over his. He moaned into her mouth, grabbing her by her hips and forcing them as closely into his as possible. She cried out as she felt his erection pressed hard against her, and her nails dragged down the back of his jacket. She realized how unwanted the garment was, and so she quickly shrugged it off his shoulders.

"God, I missed you," she moaned as he rolled her shirt up and threw it over her head, mouth returning to hers as he unbuttoned her slacks. He merely smiled into her mouth, kissing her hungrily as he dropped her knickers to her ankles. He tightly gripped both of her ass cheeks, nearly raising her up from the ground with force. She whimpered, her lips falling over his neck as she separated him from his jeans and boxers. Once he was free, he dragged her closer into him, his length shoving between her thighs. She cried out and her walls tightened, needing to feel him inside her. The liquid between her thighs seeped over the base of his cock, and he just shoved forwards-and-backwards between her thighs to tease her.

"Uhnn!" she groaned, pulling off his shirt and shoving him against the wall beside her cot. "Don't tease me," she whimpered into his ear. "Fuck me."

He flipped her over onto the bed, leaving sloppy kisses all over her neck. "Teasing you is so much fun, though."

"Three bloody months," she growled, grabbing his cock and forcing him inside with a cry of pleasure. "No patience."

"Fuck!" he gasped, beginning to gently thrust inside. "You feel so good."

She smirked, dragging his neck down and kissing him again. He moaned over her mouth, thrusts becoming harder as he came close way too soon.

"Mmh, yes! Matt, yes...uhnn..yeah...yeah..." she panted, her back arching and her toes curling.

"Baby..." he whispered, and he didn't need to say anymore. She felt him come hard inside her, and the nerves sent a shock all the way through her body. She lifted her hips firmly against him, her orgasm coming shortly after his. After a few slow thrusts, he finally pulled out of her and fell beside her, panting heavily.

He lifted his hand and ran it through her silky straight hair, amazed at how easily his hand just slid through it. "You do...look beautiful...though..."

"Are you saying...you like...my hair?" she panted, beginning to rub circles over his damp skin.

He smirked. "Maybe. But...I prefer...your curls."

She smiled, kissing him once more. "This was...a wonderful surprise. Even if...even if you embarrassed me on set."

He laughed into her kiss, continuing to run his fingers through her hair. "Sorry, love."

"Mmh, no you're not," she moaned softly, nipping at his jawline.

"Not really. You're obviously not too embarrassed if you just shagged me," he raised his brows.

"Never, darling. Give me a few minutes, and I'll do it again," she winked at him.

Matt grinned, then took her lips once more and kissed her passionately.

* * *

"Well, it's about time you came for a visit," Alex told him on the car ride home, holding his hand tightly. "What's the occasion?"

"Oh, I don't know, Kingston..." Matt's eyes drifted away from her, a small smirk tugging at his lips. "February 14th ring a bell?"

"Mmm, nope...sounds like every other day to me," she told him, and his jaw dropped a bit.

"You..you don't celebrate Valentine's Day?!" he cried nervously.

She laughed at him. "It's a bit silly to celebrate love just one day out of the year...we should celebrate love every day!"

"Well, so much for being romantic," Matt rolled his eyes. "You're such a hippie."

"I appreciate the gesture, though, sweetie," she squeezed his hand, chuckling a bit. "Maybe we can have a bit of fun with it. Turn it into a game!"

"What do you mean?" he asked, looking at her ecstatic expression.

"Let's try to see who can be more romantic!" she suggested, her smile wide.

"So we try to outdo each other with cheesy, romanticy wanticy things?" he asked, raising his brow line.

"Yes!"

"And what are the stakes to this little contest?" he asked.

"Hmm..let's see..." she twisted her mouth in thought. "The person who loses must do one thing that the winner wants."

"So let's say you win, what would you want?"

"I want you to dress up in drag and go to a gay bar with my neighbors!" she cried, seeming far to happy about that.

He laughed wildly at her. "I'm not sure if I should be offended..."

"Don't be; you'd make a beautiful queen!" she chuckled.

"I'm supposed to be your king!"

"Well I'll dress up as a male and I'll be the king! Alex KIIINNGston! Get it?!" By this point, they were both laughing wildly. When Alex finally regained her breath, she asked, "So what do you want, in case you happen to win?"

"You don't sound like you have much faith in me there, KIIINGston!" he gasped, putting a hand on his heart as if he was hurt. She only laughed, and he was quiet for a moment. "If I win, I want us to tell my parents."

She was quiet, the smile quickly faded from her face. After a while, however, she nodded. "Okay," she agreed, and he smiled wide. He had to win this.

* * *

On Valentine's morning, Alex woke to the smell of Belgian waffles and sweet flowers. She looked down, realizing the bed was completely covered in a multitude of flower petals. She gasped, quickly realizing what day it was and the contest she and Matt were having. Looks like he was off too a good start. She couldn't help but smile, picking up the petals and letting them fall through her fingers. She began to rustle off the bed, but before she could put her feet on the ground Matt came sliding into the room.

"NOT ONE FOOT ON THAT FLOOR, KINGSTON!" he cried, a trey of breakfast in his hands. He then softened, walking over to her and setting the trey of food down on the flower-covered sheets. "Breakfast in bed, for my queen."

She put her hands over her mouth, laughing happily into her palms. "Oh you've really outdone yourself, Matt."

"This? Oh, this is just a kick-start," he smiled, crawling in bed next to her and passing her an orange juice. "Wait til you see what I have planned for us later!"

"Maybe I had something planned for us!" she protested, reaching over and kissing him before beginning to eat her waffle.

"We can do both. The day's still young," he shrugged. "But mine will be better."

"If you say so," she told him, complimenting him on the delicious breakfast then going to take a shower.

He dressed casually, not feeling the need to walk around LA in a suit. He did, however, dressed more nicely than his "hipster cross-dresser" typical fashion. Button-down grey shirt and dark-washed jeans, his hair combed back and his shoes freshly shined.

Alex took ages in the bathroom, but when she came out it was worth every second. His mouth gaped open a bit and his barely-there eyebrows shot up to his hairline. She wore a long-sleeved cream-colored dress that cut dangerously above her knees. Her blonde curls spilled over her California-tanned shoulders, little white flowers planted at the crown of her head. Nice touch, he thought. Her gorgeous legs sank to the floor, anchored by white, strappy heels that made her eye-level to him.

"You look very nice," she complimented him with a smile, blushing from his speechless gaze.

"Alex...you.." he walked towards her, cupping the sides of her face and drawing her lips to his. She smiled into his kiss, wrapping her arms comfortably around him.

"You are the most beautiful woman in the whole world," he finally told her as their lips parted, his thumb caressing her cheek.

Her eyes lit up and her teeth sank into her bottom lip as she smiled. "Don't think exaggerated flattery is going to let you win this competition!" she cried, hitting him with a purse with a light chuckle before heading out the door.

He rolled his eyes and smiled, grabbing his camera before following behind her. "So, where to first, Kingston?"

"You will have to wait and see, Mr. Smith!" she told him, hopping into the driver's side as he walked into the passenger's side.

"Oh, this sounds fun already," he smirked, holding her hand as she drove to...well, he had no idea. His knowledge of American geography in general was very bad, so he couldn't begin to guess where they were headed. They discussed this the ride there, Alex sharing stories of how she often got lost in LA after the big move.

"Are we going to the beach?" Matt asked, throwing her a glance as he noticed their surroundings.

Alex smirked. "Spoilers."

He rolled his eyes and laughed. "Oh, you would."

They did, in fact, arrive at a beach. Alex took her heels off and walked in the sand, holding Matt's hand as they strolled along the shore.

"It's very nice out. A bit cold, though," Matt commented. "Aren't you afraid of getting caught?" he asked.

"No photographers. Not many people around, and the ones that are around don't seem to have a clue as to who we are. So, I think we'll be okay. Besides, the paparazzi will be too busy trying to catch what Brangelina are doing for Valentine's Day!"

Matt threw his head back and laughed. "Ah, of course. I'm sure with the other hundred celebrity couples running about that no one would even remember our names."

"I like it better that way," Alex smiled at him, the sun gleaming off of her golden curls and her smile bright as ever.

"Me too," Matt said as he lifted his camera and snapped a picture of her, causing Alex to blush and bite her lip. At that, he snapped another picture.

"Must you?!" she cried, hiding her face in her hands.

"Absolutely," he grinned.

"You and that camera!" Alex rolled her eyes, before pointing to the ferry. "This is our stop!"

"What? We're going on that thing!?" Matt asked as she hopped in the sand like a teenager.

"Yes! Come on, we have to catch it!" she laughed.

He smiled and ran after her, hopping onto the completely deserted ferry ride. Alex paid the operator, and they set course into the beautiful ocean.

"I rented the whole thing just for us," Alex smiled, wrapping both her arms around Matt's. She propped her chin on his shoulder, batting her eyelashes at him.

"Impressive...but don't think you've won just yet," he smirked.

She laughed. "Oh it's still early in the game, darling."

"Yes it is, Kingston. Yes it is," he agreed, leaning over the bow and watching as the dolphins jumped alongside the ferry. He smiled at them, snapping pictures. "I always wanted to swim with dolphins."

"You've never done it?" Alex asked with a gasp.

"You have?!"

"Darling, I'm nearly fifty. I've done a lot of things in life."

"Like?"

"Oh, you know. The usual list of things one wishes to accomplish in life."

"Something tells me your list would be far different from the usual person, Alex," he chuckled.

She gasped. "What's that supposed to mean!?"

"Well like some people would list something like skydiving...you would probably want something like riding a giraffe."

She laughed wildly. "Well, sweetie, you are rather giraffe-like!"

"KINGSTON!" he gasped, the corners of his mouth twitching into a smile.

"Mmh, you like it," she said, falling into his chest and kissing him. He flailed his arms about before finally resting them around her, sighing into her kiss as the ferry took them over the water.

* * *

When the ferry ride dropped them off at a less-populated area of California, Alex and Matt continued to walk along the beach. He mainly just let her talk, his heart longing for her to just lean into him and tell him she loved him so that he could finally say it. He listened to her silly stories about living here, and the fact that she had, in fact, actually gone sky diving before. He agreed to go with her next time.

"Come on, I have reservations!" Alex finally dragged him away from the beach, putting her heels back on and walking into the town.

The restaurant was one of the nicest he had ever been in. It was still lunch time, so not many people were there, but once again he liked it better that way.

"I'm impressed," Matt told her, folding his hands under his chin after the waiter took their order. "But I hope you don't think you're paying."

"Matt, I'm TAKING you out to lunch. I'm supposed to pay!"

"I'm your king! I will not let my queen pay!"

"It's just lunch, and it's not like I don't have money."

He rolled his eyes. "That's besides the point. It's the gesture."

"Well you can spare me the gesture on the next lunch date," she smiled.

"Are you giving me a rain check?" he asked.

"Spoilers," she told him once more with a smile.

They were quiet for most of their lunch, admiring one another and smiling with adoration.

"You know, I'm really looking forward to seeing you in a dress," Alex broke the silence with a coy smirk.

"Too bad you aren't going to," he told her, his eyebrows raised.

"You didn't like my lunch?" she pouted.

"Ehh...I've had better," Matt teased. Alex gasped. "You know, I think I feel a little sick...must be food poisini-OWW!" he cried as Alex kicked him under the table.

"That's rude!" she scorned, her mouth open in shock. "You aren't going to win this competition by being rude!"

"Says the woman who just kicked her boyfriend in the shin on Valentines Day!" he squinted in slight pain, rubbing the affected area. "And I wasn't being serious. Great place. I'd love to come again."

"Thank you," she smiled in satisfaction, paying the restaurant and getting up to leave. She wrapped her arms around Matt, kissing him on the shoulder. "I'm sorry, sweetie."

"It's alright. Not the first time you've left a mark on me," he winked.

She blushed, biting her lip and kissing him full on the lips. "Remind me to make some more later."

"I look forward to it," he breathed between the kiss, wrapping his hands in her curls outside the restaurant.

"Where to now?" she asked, breaking contact.

"Well first of all you are going to have to get me back to civilization! I don't know where the hell we are!" he said, wheeling around in an awkward way and making her laugh wildly.

"Alright, done. I'll get a cab!"

And with a few steps out on the street, a flip of her curls, and a wave of the hand, she indeed got a cab back to LA.

They stopped back by the house, and Matt grabbed his guitar, telling the cab driver to wait for him.

"What do you need that for?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Wanted to show off my Christmas present!" he told her with a beam.

"Ooh, you're going to play for me?!" she cried with a large smile.

"What's that word you like to use, Doctor Song?" he smiled.

Alex rolled her eyes. "Spoooiiilllerrs."

"Indeed," he reached over in the cab and kissed her, and then gave a hidden piece of paper to the cab driver so that he knew where to go next.

It was a long drive, Alex and Matt just held hands and he played with her curls, complimenting her on her beautiful hair.

Alex gasped when she saw a popular garden home. Oh, how she loved flowers. "Matt!" she smiled.

"Its ours for the next few hours," he smirked, grabbing his guitar and heading to the entrance.

They spent the remainder of the afternoon walking around the MASSIVE garden adorned in an international assortment of flowers and lawn ornaments. There was a Japanese bridge crossing a swan pond, Monet's renowned muse decorating the top of the water. Birds whizzed over their heads, singing beautifully as the couple walked hand-and-hand. Alex gawked over the types of flowers, though there were normally more in Spring. There were hedges that reminded her of one of the scenes in "The Girl Who Waited," and cobblestone walkways that Alex could not stop talking about. Matt just smiled as she talked and admired her surroundings, and about her love of gardens that dated back to before Matt was even born.

"Ooh, a swing!" she chirped, running over to the little swing set up around Japanese lanterns.

"Would you like me to push you?" he chuckled.

"I haven't had someone push me on a swing since I was in primary school!" she giggled, taking a seat as he walked up behind her and begin to lightly push. She through her head back, her girls brushing through the wind as she flew delicately through the air. Her eyes closed and she just laughed, her feet flying out underneath her.

After what seemed like hours passed, she slowed and she just leaned her head back on his chest, sighing happily. "You make me feel so young and free again."

"Is that a good thing?" he asked, sitting down and pulling her from the swing so that she fell onto his lap with a loud shriek.

"It is wonderful," she told him, kissing him lightly on the lips. "How's your shin?" she asked.

"Oh, I forgot about it really...you don't kick hard," he told her, brushing along her cheekbones with his fingers. His heart was pounding, three words begging to come out of his mouth. "Alex, I..."

She raised her eyebrows at his sudden awkwardness.

"I really think you're so beautiful, you know," he said, and she was.

She smiled. "Thank you, Matthew. And you are the most..handsome giraffe I know," she giggled.

He rolled his eyes and laughed. "Thanks, Kingston."

"So...are you going to show off your guitar?" she asked with delight. "I love it when you play!"

"Actually..." he grinned wide, pulling the TARDIS blue instrument from its case. "I have prepared something specifically for you."

"Me?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

He smiled, beginning to strum a beautiful tune. Then, his mouth opened...and when his voice came out, her lips fell open.

_"Your eyes are like the ocean  
__they fade from green to blue  
__Your curly hair, well...it's so crazy!  
__But it looks so good on you_

A-a-a-alex, there's no one else like you  
You're a feisty flirt  
You wear silly skirts  
You're beautiful and haven't a clue  
A-a-a-alex, I think about you every day  
And even if no one understands  
Because of the odd circumstance  
I wouldn't have it any other way

_I love your smile  
I love the way you laugh  
I could listen to you talk all day  
In that sexy little rasp_

_A-a-a-alex, there's no one else like you  
You're a feisty flirt  
You wear silly skirts  
You're beautiful and haven't a clue  
A-a-a-alex, I think about you every day  
And even if no one understands  
Because of the odd circumstance  
I wouldn't have it any other way_

Oooh, ooh... A-a-a-alex  
You're wonderful, you're unique  
When you look at me, my knees go weak  
I know it's hard, but you're worth it all  
Just us, everything else is so small

A-a-a-alex, there's no one else like you  
You're a feisty flirt  
You wear silly skirts  
You're beautiful and haven't a clue  
A-a-a-alex, I think about you every day  
And even if no one understands  
Because of the odd circumstance  
I wouldn't have it any other way..."

He was shaking a little bit, and she was crying. Her lips were parted in amazement; she was rendered speechless. Matt's mouth tightened and his eyes gleamed with curiosity, wondering how it made her feel. She tried to form words, but she couldn't. She merely leaned over his guitar and pressed her mouth onto his. He wiped her tears from her eyes and returned the vigorous kiss, moaning softly into her mouth.

After what seemed like forever and they finally pulled away, he could almost see what he wanted to say written in her eyes. His heart began to race, and he just looked at her like a wide-eyed puppy ready for its owner to throw a ball. He expected it, he could feel it in the air. This had to be it...

"Matt...I..."

He bit his lip, palms growing sweaty.

"I love..."

His lips parted and his eyes widened.

"I loved it," she finally said, smiling wide. "It was beautiful."

And down, down, tumbling down, went his little heart. He smiled, trying to hide his disappointment. "I'm glad you did," he told her, setting his guitar back in his case. "Does that mean I won?"

She laughed. "So hasty! Maybe I have a couple of other things planned!"

He smirked, rolling his eyes. "Can't wait..come on, I want to get pictures of you with all the flowers and the Japanese-looking-thingies."

"Very eloquent choice of words, darling," she chuckled as he helped her from the ground and they continued to walk around the exotic garden.

* * *

When the sun began to set, they finally headed home. Alex was practically falling asleep on Matt's shoulder, and he hummed to her softly.

"So what's this you have planned for me?" he asked as they finally arrived to her home.

She smirked. "Go to the bedroom, I'll be right there."

Matt did so, laying on the bed and waiting for her. He dimmed the lights and lit candles around the room. When she finally returned, she returned with strawberries...

...and whipped cream.

...and chocolate syrup.

Matt's eyes widened. "Uh..what...what...are those for...?"

Alex laughed. "What do you think they're for, sweetie?!" setting them down on the bed beside him.

"Um...are we going to eat them...?" he asked, blushing madly.

She giggled, touching her mouth. "Yes, Matt, we are," she laid her body over his, kissing him gently. He moaned into her mouth, his hands grazing over her shoulders. She began undressing him, pulling his shirt open, allowing her knuckles to brush against the bony chest that his heart pounded against. He wasn't sure how to remove this contraption of a dress she had on, but he tried. She couldn't help but giggle, sitting up and removing the dress herself. He gulped as she revealed her impossibly gorgeous body. Hourglass curves, plump breasts, and full thighs seeming even more beautiful in the candle light. Scarlet patches rose against his cheeks, his mouth falling open once more. She felt him grow beneath her, and she made a point to grind herself over him with a soft moan.

He bit his lip and groaned, undoing his own belt and assisting her as they pulled all his bottoms off.

"There," she said as they were finally both naked, pressing gentle kisses on his neck and grabbing the strawberries. She began to decorate him, smirking and biting her lip seductively. She took her time, kissing his lips occasionally as he throbbed hard against her thigh. She took the whipped cream, making a goody trail down to his cock and making a Matt sundae around it. He smiled, both amused and turned on at the same time. Oh, only Alex could do this to him.

She finished decorating the sundae with more strawberries and chocolate syrup, then started kissing him fully and passionately. She trailed her lips over his neck, kissing and biting, making him moan. She kissed and licked where she left strawberries and chocolate, eating them off of him as her lips traveled further down. She positioned herself between his legs, her glance meeting his as she sank her lips onto the best part of her sundae.

Matt gasped, fingers winding into her curls as she slowly ate her way to his center. His legs twitched, entire body shuddering from the way her lips rolled over him. She finally found his base, and kissed her way up to his head. Matt moaned, pulling her hair just slightly. Her tongue lapped over the sensitive skin, lips accommodating his width as she eased her head down. She took him in almost whole, sucking her cheeks in as she came up. He gasped, her hot, wet mouth causing a wave of nerves to jolt through his body. She continued to go down, increasing her pace, her tongue licking up his center each time her mouth came up.

"Mmmhff...Alex...uh...babe..."he gasped for breath, his toes curling and his stomach somersaulting. "That feels so...uhh...amazing..."

She took his encouragement, taking him in as much and as fast as possible.

"Alex...Aleeeexx..."he slurred, his words turning into straight moans. "Gonna..."

She didn't get much of a warning before he spilled into her mouth, and she smiled, swallowing it whole. Matt threw his head back, panting as she came up, kissing his neck once more and curling into him. He flipped her over, raising her hands above her head and kissing her palms, her wrists. She whimpered, back arching into him. "Mmh, Matt...please," she begged. He released her, grabbing what was left of the kinky food items and spreading them over her curves. When he finished, he gently touched her hot core, gasping again. "Baby, you're so wet," he told her, his mouth falling over hers.

"For you," she moaned, bucking her hips just slightly. He drew circles over her clit as he licked and kissed all over her body, eating off of her as she did him. He removed his hand, putting her leg over his shoulder and kissing the insides of her thighs, down to her knee, putting fine detail into every kiss. Her hips flew through the air, practically dripping wet with need. He kissed her other leg back down until he met where she was so wet. He licked his lips, then flicked his tongue over her clit. She gasped, pressing herself against his face and clutching the bed sheets. "Darling, please..." she begged him, and he obliged, diving his tongue into her center. He stroked her pulsing walls with his tongue, exploring her thoroughly. He nibbled down on her folds, rolling his lips over her cunt. He soon replaced his tongue with his fingers, causing Alex to cry out in pleasure. He sucked her clit, fingers pounding into her hard. She moaned and whimpered erratically, her legs wrapping around him tightly. She couldn't take much, and felt herself building.

"Sweetie, I'm...I'm..." she mewled loud, her orgasm racking through her body. He didn't let go, forcing her to ride through it until she couldn't take it anymore. He finally pulled away, rising so that his hips were even with hers. He shoved himself into her, feeling her still pulsing from her orgasm. She shrieked, her nails scratching down his back as he thrusted gently into her. He moaned, telling her again how good she felt. He pounded into her, and she matched his rythm valiantly. Their moans and cries filled the air and they lost themselves in ecstasy, enjoying the sensation of filling one another until they both came close to the edge again. The energy in the room heightened, and Alex released again, her legs wrapping around him and her lips sinking into his neck. Her reactions sent him over the brink, and he came again inside her, riding her through her aftershock. They panted, bodies drenched in sweat and the scent of chocolate and strawberries. He smiled down at her beautiful face, taking her lips and rolling beside her. He pulled her in close, brushing his fingers over her face.

She smiled. "That was..."

"Amazing," he finished her sentence, pecking her softly. "It's always amazing with you."

"It is, isn't it?" she chuckled, cuddling close to him. "Best sex of my life."

"Really?" he smirked, drawing circles over her bare back.

"Mmhm. I should have started shagging younger men ages ago," she teased.

"KINGSTON!" his jaw dropped, and she giggled.

"I'm only kidding, Matthew. Besides, you know how I felt about the age difference from the beginning."

"It never mattered to me."

"Not even when we first met?" she asked.

"Not at all. I had no idea how old you were; I thought you were sexy before I even met you."

"What do you mean, 'before you met me?'" she raised a brow.

"Well, I um...remember when I told you I watched Moll Flanders the night before we met?"

She blushed. "How could I forget?"

He smiled sheepishly. "Oh God...this is embarrassing...I can't believe I'm telling you this..I um...actually masturbated to it. To you..."

"Shut up! You did not!" she gasped in complete shock.

"I did..."

"But...you had Daisy!"

"She was out of town," Matt shrugged. "And you are ridiculously sexy. How was I supposed to resist?"

"I filmed that ages ago. I was thirty-three!"

"Didn't know it at the time, and you're still just as sexy. In fact, I prefer you now."

"Oh, shut up," she blushed. "You wouldn't want to go back in time and have me as a younger woman instead?"

"Actually, no. I'm fine with where we are at now. I'm happy with how it happened and when it happened. The only reason I would ever wish that I was born closer to you would be so I could have spent more time with you."

"Sweetie..." she gushed. "I think that's the most romantic thing to be said all day."

"Does that mean I win?" he asked with a smirk.

"...alright, you win," she told him, defeated.

His face lit up and he grinned widely. He couldn't wait to tell his parents.


End file.
